Exile
by Shikaku Zetsumei
Summary: [Old, Hiatus] "You are sentenced to exile. Your destination is mortal life on the Planet." Betrayal, lies, and deceit. A young girl struggles to clear her name as darkness creeps ever closer to the Holy city. VincentXOC Cloti Chapter ELEVEN up! ALSO Author's Intro
1. Author's Introduction

Author's Introduction:

Hello, this is Shikaku Zetsumei. You are about to read one of my more completed works known as Exile. This piece began several years ago, I believe it was about 3 or more. My writing was a bit shoddy then and many things were quickly written. This story, along with my other stories, came to a halt two years ago, in which I seemed to hit a roadblock in my writing. Struggling through this time, I managed to slowly develop my writing, exposing it to newer elements. Hopefully, within the later chapter's you can notice the maturation of my writing. Otherwise, I hope you enjoy Exile as much as I do writing it.

Shikaku Zetsumei


	2. Exile

Me: Okay. This story has an interesting take on life and death… I did a Vincent x OC because it fits this story better. Just read it and review… please?

Summary: "You are sentenced to exile. Your destination is mortal life on the Planet." Betrayal, lies, and deceit. A young girl struggles to clear her name as darkness creeps ever closer to the Holy city. VincentXOC

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Prologue – Exile

Fate can be cruel. She is always blamed for all of our misfortunes, praised for out fortunes, and scorned by all others. She is held responsible for everything that befalls us. She pulls all the strings to the puppet called life. But what would happen if it wasn't her fault? If she was never there to take the blame? If she had no responsibility or claim in anything? If someone else was pulling the strings?

………………………………………………………………………………………………

A white court. Pure white. Everything in the room glistened. Even the judges wore white. Guards stood at each side of the door, weapons held ready, as if daring someone to try to escape. The only thing that wasn't white in the room was a small heap wearing gray rags in the middle of the room.

"Fate Sera. Subject missing for six months. Accused for the crimes as followed. Two accounts of murder, both Cetra by the names of Aeris Gainsborough Gast, daughter of Cetra Ifalna Gast and Sephiroth Lament, son of Cetra Lucrecia Lament. And one account of treason in which the subject summoned Meteor and tried to destroy all that we live for." The man loomed over the figure of a young girl. "These are the charges. How do you plead?" He asked with a look of contempt.

She started at the question and looked up with tearful eyes. She opened her mouth to speak.

"I… ah…" she couldn't get the rest out.

"Can't speak, eh? The Holy Court of the Planet finds you guilty of all charges. You shall be sentenced to exile. Your destination is mortal life on the Planet. Goodbye and never show your face here ever again. If we see you here again, we will send you to the pits of hell. This case is closed." He slammed his hammer down on the gravel.

"N…No!" She managed.

But the man took no heed as he got up and left the room. Guards came over and dragged her out of the room. She wept bitterly as they led her to another pearly white room. This room had candle brackets in each of the five corners and a man standing in the middle. The man moved to the left to allow the men to chain her to the middle of the room.

"Lord Envy, the subject is awaiting banishment."

"Good…" the man waved his hand for them to go.

They left the room and he turned to the girl who had stopped crying and was looking at him in fear. His long robes seemed to flow with the grace of water as he moved around the room, drawing symbols around a large circle within a circle. He then drew another circle around the girl. She tried to struggle free, to bite him or hinder him in any way such that he could not complete the ritual. The chains held her tight. He looked at her.

"Well, well, well… Sera. So we meet again…"

"You…!"

"Yes. Me. Oh, and one more thing, before you go," he leaned in to whisper. "I summoned Meteor."

She looked up in horror as he began to chant the spell that would banish her to the Planet. He completed the spell and the world began to melt away. He grinned at her.

"Have fun in the mortal world!"

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Me: And that is the prologue to a wonderful (maybe) story! Review and wait for the next chapter! The purple button calls!


	3. Fate

Me: IT'S MY BIRTHDAY! YAY!

Vincent: Nobody cares.

Me: sniff... you're so mean... I'm gonna make you die in this story now...

Vincent: What! I... um... sorry... uh... happy birthday...

Me: YAY! Here's the first chapter of Exile!

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 1 – Fate

Vincent Valentine was bored. Every day had passed the same exact way. He would wake up each morning, go to work, and go home. He worked with Cloud in the local weapon shop. They didn't really need to work since they were all millionaires from the Meteor incident, but they had nothing better to do. Cloud lived with Tifa in her old home and Vincent had returned to the mansion, tidying it up and making it livable.

"Vince! Customer!" Cloud shouted from a corner of the shop.

"What do you need?"

The man cowered at the sight of Vincent. So he tried a reassuring smile. This seemed to terrify the man beyond anything.

"H…Hunting…"

"Well, I would recommend the twenty-two gauge rifle." He picked a gun off the rack. "Fairly good aim and lots of power. Or were you looking for something else?" He asked.

"No… this is fine…"

Vincent spun the gun fluidly, disconnecting certain parts and oddities.

"Do you know how to reassemble it?"

"Yes."

"That'll be ten thousand gill, and I'll need to see some ID."

"Sure." The man pulled out his credit card and a driver's licence.

"Alright. Good luck on your hunt."

"T-Thanks!" The man walked, quite quickly, out of the shop.

"Did you scare another customer off again?" Cloud joked.

"No. He bought a rifle."

"Oh. Okay. Well, I gotta get home. Tifa's waiting. See yuh, Vince!"

He nodded, cleaned and locked up the place, and headed back to the mansion. There, he went into the tool shed and brought out an axe. The mansion was getting low on firewood so he'd need more. He went to the base of the Nibel Mountains and started hacking at an old log that had fallen some years ago.

'_Hey, Vinnie… Can I come out to play?'_ Chaos asked for the millionth time.

"**No."**

'_Why?'_ Chaos whined.

"**Because you'd kill everyone in Nibelheim, fly over some random ocean, change back, and laugh as I fall into the water."**

'_Pleeeaaase? Just to stretch my wings a bit?'_

"**No. 'Stretching your wings' generally means you have some evil little plan to leave me on some god-forsaken cliff or island."**

'Dang… You know me too well…' 

There was a patter of footsteps followed by the growl of a Nibel Wolf.

**"Must be a rabbit or something. As long as I'm not the target…"**

The Nibel Wolves roared, apparently catching their prey. Then there was a gunshot. Vincent recognized it as the twenty-two gauge rifle the man had just bought.

'Hmm… so he's hunting wolves?'

Another gunshot, this time followed by a scream and a yell. He heard the clatter of a gun dropping on the ground.

'_Shiiiit… I think they killed him…'_

**"****But there was another voice there…****"**

"Help… Please… Somebody…" a weak voice gasped out.

'Vincent! They're attacking another human!' 

"**What!"** He ran in the direction of the wolves.

He found them in a semicircle, attacking a young girl. She was naked, pale skin bright in the dim light. The wolves had bitten her arms, legs and even her stomach. Long scratches showed everywhere on her fair skin as the wolves attacked one by one. Her arm was bleeding severely from a gunshot wound and the man that had bought the rifle lay dead on the ground, a huge bite mark on his throat. The smell of blood had made the wolves go into a frenzy. One leapt at the girl. He rushed to the fallen rifle, picked it up, cocked it, and fired.

"Get out of here!" He shouted shooting the wolf in mid-leap.

The rest of the wolves instantly changed tactics and charged at him. They slashed and bit at Vincent. More wolves seemed to appear at the prospect of two food sources. Some wolves had started in on the girl again. She screamed as the wolves tore at her. He fired again, but found that there was no more ammo.

"Chaos! Now!" He mentally shouted, throwing the rifle at the wolves. 'Yess…' 

Vincent transformed into the huge purple demon. The wolves cowered in face of their new opponent. Chaos tore through the ranks, decimating their ranks. The girl watched in fascinated horror. The snowy ground was now scarlet and pink. The remaining wolves hightailed it out of there. He transformed back into Vincent and approached the girl. She looked up with tears of pain in her eyes.

"C…Chaos…" she whispered and collapsed.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

She awoke. It was very dark and very quiet. She tried to call out but her throat was very dry. The darkness pressed in upon her. Her body seemed to be on fire as areas on her arms, legs, stomach, and back hurt badly. Her arm felt like it was on fire. She whimpered, curled up on the bed, and started to cry. She had been banished from her home, torn to shreds, and now she would die here in this dark place.

"Are you alright?" Her eyes flashed open in fright.

She scooted away from the speaker and gasped in pain. A cool hand eased her gently down.

"You need rest. Sleep. Your wounds have not healed yet."

His, for it was male, voice was smooth and melodic, like the rich tones of an organ. She felt that she could trust this man. He wiped her tears away.

"What is your name?"

She lay there for some time before answering his question.

"Sera…" she whispered and closed her eyes.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

_She had been wandering as usual, trying to find someone to play with. A poor hobo became rich after finding a lottery ticket on the ground. A wealthy businessman struck into poverty through a series of misfortunes._

"_Fate Sera!" A voice called out._

"_What is it?" She walked over to the man._

_A hand grabbed her, forcing her into a room._

"_We can't have you interfering, now can we?" A voice whispered in her ear._

'_It's a trap!' She thought frantically before a cloth was pressed to her nose and she lost consciousness._

_Whoever it was put her into a drug-induced slumber. She was constantly watched and whenever she showed signs of waking up, they would drug her even more. She had been found months later in her room, confused and accused of treason._

"_I summoned Meteor…"_

_He laughed at her expression._

"_Have fun in the mortal world!"_

_She was falling, the ground of the Planet drew closer as wind rushed past her face. She braced herself for impact. It didn't come. Instead, she was lowered gently to the ground, as if the spell was mocking her. The wind howled around her. The icy winds blew from the mountaintops, biting at her bare skin. He had made the spell disintegrate her meager clothes, just to spite her. She shivered and tried to keep herself warm. For the first time in many years, she could feel cold again. Yet this was not favorable in her position since any moment she could fall unconscious and become prey to wild animals or get hypothermia. She thought this as she trudged through the thin layer of snow that crusted the Nibelheim mountains slopes. She tried calling out again, but months without speaking had left her voice weak and unable to produce more than a small sound. She thought bitterly of the man responsible for all this. The way he had laughed at her as he sent her to her doom._

"_I summoned Meteor…"_

_There was the sound of padded footsteps followed by a growl._

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She cried out and trashed about. It was all his fault. Everything had been planned! She felt someone cradle her and rock her gently back and forth. It was comforting. Never in her cursed life had she ever experienced such care. She felt her worries and pain slip away. She opened her eyes and found herself in the warm embrace of the man that had saved her. He stroked her hair and looked down at her. The room was dimly lit, she noticed, as he gave her a cup of something warm and sweet.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded. Her throat felt looser and a lot better after drinking the contents of the mug. She tried speaking again.

"Who…who are you?"

"My name is Vincent Valentine."

"Chaos…" she muttered.

"Yes, he is a part of me. How did you know that?"

He looked her up and down, getting the first proper look of the girl. Her hair was a dark brown almost black, and there were faint silvery white streaks in it, almost like a meteor shower through the night sky. Her eyes were a dark gray. They seemed to be shifting colors even as he watched, turning slightly whiter than they had been previously. She was small, probably the same size and age as Yuffie. She on the other hand noticed that she was wearing a long-sleeved, black shirt and some black pants. The man, Vincent, must have lent her clothes and lent her a bed. She sipped at her mug, shivering slightly. He looked at her and strode over to the fireplace. Vincent pulled out a materia orb.

"Fire." He muttered.

The wood crackled as the spell hit it and caused it to burst into flames. The temperature in the room rose gradually until it was nice and warm. Sera sighed slightly.

"**What's with her eyes?"**

'_Oh… Sinners Eyes. Haven't seen those in a while.'_

"**What are you talking about?"**

'_Depending on how many good or evil acts she has seen, her eyes will change in accordance. More evil, the blacker they get. More good, the whiter they get. I thought only the Fates had them… Didn't know normal people could have them…'_

"**How do you know this?"**

'_I wasn't just waiting for you in a test tube you know.'_

He turned back to her.

"So, how do you know Chaos?"

"Brother…"

"What?"

Vincent winced as Chaos kicked him out of his mind, though retaining Vincent's body. Vincent, Chaos, grabbed the girl by the chin and looked at her intensely.

"Sera! What… what are you doing here!"

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Me: Well, I'll leave it at that for now. I know that was short, but the next chapter is going to be really long! Next chapter, Chaos's past and how he came to be!

Special Thanks:

To AncientDirgeDragon: Sorry it was so short... you'll like the next chapter...


	4. Chaos

Me: Here's the second chappy to Exile. Hope ya like it!

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

To all you wonderful reviewers: You all get lots of cookies! Yay! Thanks a bunch! Arigatou, mina. You peoples are the first to say that my summary attracted you to the story! Take some extra cookies!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

****Chapter 2 – Chaos

"Sera! What… what are you doing here!"

Sera cried out in joy as she wrapped her arms around Vincent/Chaos, ignoring the pain in her arms and stomach.

"So lucky…" she muttered.

"What are you doing here?" Chaos repeated.

For the first time in his life, Vincent heard pure concern in Chaos's voice.

"Banished."

"For what!"

"Meteor…"

Vincent's voice joined in. It seemed pretty weird, two voices coming out of a single person.

"Hold on. I'm confused. How are you her brother?"

"Well, not through actual blood relationships. Nobody who knows each other in the Holy city is actually related. It's near impossible to find relatives in there."

"Holy city?" Vincent asked.

"Yeah. Otherwise known as Lifestream, or the Promised Land."

"So they're all the same?"

"Yup."

"So how do you know about it?"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(76 years ago…)(Chaos's POV)

Strange the way people work. The rich scorn upon the poor, the poor hate the rich, and those who are larger in both status and size pick on those smaller. She was so innocent, just a simple servant in the House of Legends. This was the greatest building in the Holy city. Even the creator himself/herself (hey, you never know…) was rumored to live in it. I bumped into her by accident. Who was I? Just a simple villager. But she caught my eye. Not love, mind you, but a sense of protection. That this girl should not be wronged in any way.

"Out of my way!" An important looking officer shoved her to the side.

"Hey!" I shouted. "That's no way to treat a lady!"

He glared at me.

"One, she ain't a lady. She's a servant. Two, who are you to be telling me what to do, brat!" He kicked me in the side.

I gasped in pain, falling down. He laughed and walked off. I lay there for some time, the pain burning through my side. Then I got up and, seeing that she had already left, walked out of the House of Legends. On the way home, I bought a sword and started mastering it. I soon thought nobody could beat me in a fight. I got cocky and challenged one of the generals.

"Come on! Old man!" I had shouted.

He looked me up and down, sighed, and walked up to me.

"You cannot defeat me."

"Shut it, bastard!" I swung the sword.

In less than a millisecond, he had unsheathed his saber with his left hand and blocked.

"If you insist."

He flew into a flurry of attacks. He was so quick… no wonder he was a general. I was soon flat on my back, his saber pressed against my throat.

"You're a hundred years too early." He said switching the sword to his right.

He had fought me with his non-dominant hand. He then grabbed my sword, threw it into the air and cut it in two with his. The loud clang of metal breaking rang through out the city. By that time, I had realized that each hit he gave me was with the flat of his blade. If he had been fighting for real, I would've been dead before I knew it. He left me there. The crowd had been cheering.

"He beat you pretty badly, eh?" A man stood over me.

"Shut up…"

"My, my, my… what an attitude… I was going to offer to train you… but I guess I'll take that offer elsewhere."

I quickly sat up.

"You would?"

"Not with that attitude…" he walked off.

I ran after him.

"Please! You've got to teach me!"

"No. Not yet…"

He went back into his house.

"You must!"

"No." He closed the door.

"Damn!" I sat down in front of the door.

I stayed there for days and nights, through rain and shine.

"Go away." He said.

"No."

"Why do you wish to learn?" He brought his face close to mine.

"To protect someone."

"Hmph… a likely story. Not for power? Money? Fame? Glory?" He questioned.

"No." I said firmly.

He stared at me for the longest of times, as if he were staring straight into my soul.

"Fine. I will train you."

For months, I trained with him. His name was Derik. He had been one of the President's bodyguards back in the Imperial Age. His training was tough. At times, I wanted to give up, but quickly reminded myself of the general that had beaten me. I aimed to become better than him. Through his teachings, I learned to be more humble.

"To protect the weak, you must think of their safety alone. Never underestimate you opponent. They may be holding back on you." He said.

I nodded and continued training. One whole year had passed since I lost to the general. This time, I made my way into the ranks. I started by challenging a low-ranked officer. Finally, I was in the troops. I gained experience fast. There were battles against the demons almost every week. Gradually, I rose through the ranks. I was soon the captain of my division. I met her again several weeks after becoming a captain. I was walking through the House of Legends, where most of our meetings were held.

"Oh, sorry sir." She bowed in apology.

I held out a hand to help her up. She winced, obviously thinking I was going to hit her. I sighed, grabbed her hand, and pulled her up.

"What's your name?"

"Sera."

"Hmm… That's a nice name. Why did you flinch at my hand? Am I that scary?"

"N-No…"

"Don't worry. I won't hurt you."

She smiled gratefully, picked up her stuff, and hurried off. For the next few days I watched her closely. An officer in my division bumped into her. It was pretty obvious that it was intentional. I recognized him as the man that had kicked me in the side so I listened to the conversation.

"Brat! Watch where yer going!"

"Sorry."

"Servants should respect their betters! You should make way for me!"

"Sorry…" she muttered.

He glared angrily at the pitiful responses she was giving. He raised a hand to slap her. First verbal abuse and now this. It was going too far. I strode over and caught the hand as it descended.

"What do you think your doing, corporal?"

"N-nothing, sir!"

"Good. Because the next time you try a stunt like this, you'll be out of my division and back out on the streets!"

"Sorry, sir!"

He scurried off.

"You okay?"

"Yes…"

"That's good."

I picked up her stuff and handed it to her. She blushed and ran off. I sighed. After a couple weeks, I challenged the general of our division and took his spot. By this time, I had gained the nickname, Chaos, due to my ferocity on the battlefield. I had not lost a single battle.

"You again!"

I turned. It was the general I had challenged several months back.

"Haha! I knew you'd make it someday!"

He extended a hand.

"Name's Samuel! So, you're a general now, huh?"

"Yep."

"Nice going!"

He had been general for some hundreds of years, said to be one of the best in the whole army. I looked up to him, he an great strategist and a skilled fighter. Sera on the other hand, had been bestowed the title of Fate. Sera was the servant of the old Fate and she loved Sera like a mother and her child. The previous Fate had been a kind lady. She had died in a spell accident and had given Sera the title. Everything had been going right. I visited Sera more often and she sort of became my little sister in a way. Then the army had been sent to war. It had been a normal battle like many others, but something was wrong. The enemy seemed withdrawn, almost unwilling to fight. Almost like cows given to a slaughterhouse. I grabbed one of them.

"Who is your leader?"

"He…" the demon began feebly before an arrow was imbedded in his skull.

I saw one of our sorcerers walking towards me. It had been Lord Envy. The king's own assistant. Power rivaled only by the creator. He walked up to me in the midst of battle and smiled.

"Having fun?"

"What?"

"Look at them." He gestured around. "All of them wasting their lives for nothing."

"What are you talking about?" I began to grow wary and walked back several steps, sword drawn.

"Look."

A demon walked slowly up to him. Lord Envy placed a hand on his shoulder and he disappeared.

"You! You set us up!" I shouted and rushed at him.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck me and I collapsed. The last thing I remember seeing was the demons disappearing and a huge monolith of a demon reforming.

"Let's watch your friends play." Was the last thing I heard him say before falling into blackness.

I awoke in a white room. This wasn't unusual since all of our rooms were alike. I sat up and looked around. It wasn't my room. I happened to glance at a mirror and caught a flash of deep purple. I looked again and was greeted with blood red eyes and pointed ears. I looked at myself fully. I had wings, and my hands and feet were now clawed. I was a demon! I knew it was all Lord Envy's work. Outside, I could hear people talking about the horrible battle and how only a few survived. I rushed outside without thinking and was confronted with screams.

"Oh gods! It's a demon!"

"Guards! Demon in the city!"

I ran for it. I ran to the only place I knew that I could trust.

"Sera!" I burst into her chambers.

She looked up in fright, her fingers strayed to a button to call the guards.

"Stop! It's me!"

She looked at me.

"Chaos?"

"Yes! Lord Envy did this! You have to be careful around him. I think he intends to destroy us all! He's the one who took out the troops!"

"What?"

"Yes! And…"

"There's the demon! Get it! It's attacking the Fate!"

I tried to run, to fly, but this time, before I could escape, I felt painful shocks of the electro-rods the guards carried. Next thing I knew, I was led to a chamber. A man was speaking.

"I will banish the beast to hell. Would you like to watch?"

"Yes. I want to watch all the vermin who killed my troops be destroyed."

I recognized Envy and Samuel's voices. I opened my eyes to find Envy drawing a banish spell circle around me. I looked at Samuel. He glared back in contempt.

"Be gone, demon." He said as Envy began to chant the spell.

"Wait! It's me! Chaos! Samuel help! I swear it's me! Don't you remember? You beat me and cut my sword in two once! Stop Envy! He set us up! He turned me into this!"

Samuel looked at me in alarm.

"Envy!" Samuel turned on him as he completed the spell.

"I will not deny it. But he is already going. I'll just say he killed you."

Samuel drew his saber and charged. Envy grabbed the blade, broke it with his bare hand, and slammed a dagger into his chest. Blood splattered on the white floor. My vision was starting to fade and I could feel the fires of hell waiting. Samuel fell to the floor. He crawled over to the circle.

"Wait! What are you doing! Stop!" Envy cried.

And in a last act of friendship, Samuel broke the circle. But I was still disappearing fast. Envy scoffed in disgust and kicked Samuel's body away. I vanished from the Holy city that day and ended up on the Planet due to a break in the spell circle.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"And afterwards, I was caught in my weakened state, turned into a liquid matter, and injected into you." Chaos finished.

"Wow…" Vincent muttered.

"How did you get blamed for summoning Meteor?" Chaos asked.

"Envy." She said.

"Damn him! He's continuing his plans! He's probably trying to take over the Holy city!"

"Well, we have to do something about it. Maybe Cloud and Tifa could help." Vincent suggested.

"Yes. That's a good idea. Well, Sera, I'm going back into his mind where I live now. Vincent will take good care of you." With that, Chaos let Vincent back in control of body.

"You should rest now. You have a slight fever and your body has not recovered fully yet." Vincent said.

"Okay…" Sera said.

She lay down on the cool sheets, feeling a lot better about the banishment and knowing that all would be well.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(This part's just to lighten the mood. A glimpse inside of Vincent's mind after the story.)

_Chaos_

_**Hellmasker**_

**Death Gigas**

Galian Beast

"_**Aw… that was so sweet. I never thought you had it in you, Chaos."**_

"_Shut up, or you'll never get your chainsaw back."_

"_**You cheated and you know it. It's impossible get a straight flush that easily."**_

"_Can you prove it?"_

"**I don't get it. I though you were the evil demon trying to destroy the world."**

"_Did I ever say I was an evil demon trying to destroy the world?"_

"**Well… no… but…"**

"Ya know… it's kinda hard not to… you look evil… and you always do that creepy laugh when you win a battle…"

"_You stay out of this, weakling!"_

"Sniff… Gigas… he's making fun of me again… waaahhh…"

"**It's alright. All that power went to his head. Being beaten didn't help much either…"**

"_Hey!"_

"**_I want my chainsaw back…"_**

"_No."_

"**Let's team up on him."**

"_H…Hey wait…"_

This was followed by a painful headache for Vincent… and he had to put up with this throughout the whole night.

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Me: Once again, that was kinda short. But was it good? Let's clear a few things up... just in case. Fate is a title, kinda like Doctor or President. It'll be easier calling her Sera instead of Fate all the time. So didja like it? Please review…


	5. Planning

Me: Here ya go. Next chapter. I have nothing more to say.

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 3 – Planning

Vincent awoke the next day and went to check on the young girl. She was still sound asleep so he went downstairs to make breakfast.

'_If you let her come to any harm, I will make your life hell.'_

"**So you really like her huh?"**

'_What are you talking about? I told you it's like a fatherly type love.'_

"**Sure… heh. The great Chaos beaten by a general. Never thought I'd hear that."**

'_S-Shut up! That was because I was young and stupid! Must I remind you of all the stupid thing **you** did before I came to be in your mind?__'_

**"Um… no thanks…"**

He blocked Chaos out and continued to make breakfast. After a while, Sera came down and stumbled into the kitchen.

"Watch your step." He led her over to the table and set some eggs and bacon in front of her.

She looked unsure as of what to do and he gave her a fork. She soon learned what to do and ate the rest of her breakfast. Afterwards, Vincent and Sera walked over to Cloud's house and he knocked on the door.

"Coming!" Tifa yelled.

She opened the door.

"Hey, Vincent! What brings you here?"

He stepped aside revealing Sera, who was previously hiding behind him. She stood there in Vincent's clothes and looked up in fright at the tall woman.

"Hey! Who are you?"

"Fate Sera." Vincent said.

"That's a strange name. Come in!" She led them inside.

They sat down in the living room right when Cloud came in.

"Vincent! You sly dog! You're bringing girls to the mansion now?" Indicating Sera who was practically clinging onto Vincent's arm.

Vincent gave Cloud a 'I'm Going to Kill You, You're Small and Insignificant' glare, which worked. Vincent began to tell the story of how Sera had come to be on the Planet. Afterwards, Tifa looked at the young girl.

"We're not going to hurt you. We're gonna help you get back to the Holy city okay?"

"Banished." She muttered.

"I'm sure they'll let you back once they know who's responsible for all of it."

"Come on! Let's get you some decent clothes!" Tifa pulled on Sera's arm.

Sera gave Vincent a frightened look. He nodded and she allowed Tifa to lead her out of the house.

"I'm sure Tifa will have a good effect on her. Make her feel more comfortable and all that."

"The question still remains. How are we to get to the Holy city?"

"I dunno. Fly there?"

"Cloud. I understand that you are blonde, but please, keep those comments to yourself."

"Hey!" 'Glad nobody's here to hear that!' He thought feverishly.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Later that night, Tifa and Sera returned home carrying huge bags.

"What did you do? Spend all your money?"

"Just shut up and help! I think Sera might be crushed by all the stuff she's carrying!"

Indeed, Sera was carrying what seemed like twice her weight in bags.

"So, what did you buy?" Vincent inquired taking the bags.

"Clothes and the like. We got her a weapon as well. You could teach her, Vincent."

"…"

Sera brought out a small pistol, similar to the ones provided to the Turks.

"I will teach her."

"That's great. Well, I'm gonna go make dinner. You can go wash up or watch TV until I'm done."

Tifa headed into the kitchen and Cloud crashed onto the couch. Vincent led Sera upstairs. He showed her how to use the shower and handed her a bar of soap and a bottle of shampoo. After a few minutes, she came out in a white T-shirt and long cargo pants she and Tifa had bought. Seeing that Vincent was nowhere to be found, she went downstairs. Vincent and Cloud were sitting on the couch watching TV. A delicious aroma spilled out from the kitchen. She walked in to see Tifa setting several dishes onto the table.

"Oh, good. You can tell those slobs to come and eat."

Sera walked back into the living room.

"Dinner's ready." She said.

"Great!" Cloud dashed into the kitchen.

"How are your wounds?" Vincent asked.

"They've stopped bleeding…" Sera said.

"Good."

Tifa had prepared a huge dinner on the pretense that 'Sera was skinnier than Yuffie.' She, of course, ate gratefully. After a while, Vincent spoke up again.

"I think we should head to Midgar tomorrow. We'll call the others, see if they want to help. I have an idea."

"Spill it, Vince. What's this great idea."

"Death."

"You're crazy!" Cloud said.

"No, it makes perfect sense. We will die and then head to the Holy city. It's not that hard. After we're finished, we'll find a way back to our bodies."

"I guess that makes sense… I'll ask Nanaki."

Vincent and Sera said goodbye and headed back to the mansion.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

_She was standing in the Holy Court of the Plane. This time, she wasn't the only person chained up. To her left was Cloud and Tifa. To her right was Vincent. The judge was speaking again. They dragged Cloud off. He struggled but couldn't do a thing. There was screaming. So much screaming… an then it stopped. The guards came back in, swords bloody. Tifa was crying. The judge spoke again and she was taken. She didn't struggle. She knew it was useless and that there was no place to run. Once again, the guards came back in. This time, their swords trailed a thin river of blood. The judge spoke. The guards started to grab Vincent. He leapt up, breaking free of his bonds. He fought savagely, killing both guards. More rushed in. He fought, but one by one, spears found their way into his body. Right in front of her eyes, he kept fighting. Finally, one guard leapt up behind him and slashed at his throat. Blood gushed out of his artery. His eyes fixed on hers as he fell. She screamed as the judge spoke one last time and the guards came near her._

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Vincent awoke abruptly to the sound of screaming. He burst into Sera's room to find her crying and tangled in her bed sheets. He ran over and untangled her. He could barely make out what she was saying.

"No… Oh gods! Why did you kill them? Why!"

"Sera? Sera, wake up!"

She gripped his shirt unconsciously and continued crying. He sat down on the bed and rubbed her back soothingly. Her words died down to incoherent whispers and gradually, she stopped crying. She continued to hold onto his shirt as her breathing even out. Vincent sighed, sat down on the bed, and pulled the covers over them both. He eventually drifted off to sleep as well.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Tifa finished calling the rest of the teammates. She walked into the bedroom.

"UP!" She shouted, smacking Cloud with a pillow.

"Ow…"

She continued to beat him with the pillow until he fell out of bed.

"Hey! What was that for!"

"Lazy bum. Cid's coming soon. We have to go tell Vincent."

"Can't we do that later?"

"No. Now hurry up!"

Cloud mumbled several choice curses and dragged himself into the bathroom.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sera awoke in a warm and comfortable position. She looked around and found herself in Vincent's arms.

"What?"

At that, Vincent awoke.

"Sera…"

SLAP!

"Pervert!" Sera screamed. "Get out of my bed!"

(A/N: hehehe… poor Vinnie…)

She raised her hand to strike out again, her eyes growing dangerously black. Vincent caught it this time.

"Don't do that again."

"Why are you here!"

"You were having a nightmare. Then you grabbed me and wouldn't let go."

At this, Sera flushed a deep crimson.

"Sorry… d-does that hurt…?"

"Not really."

Sera stayed silent for some time without moving out of Vincent's grasp.

"Would you like to talk about it?"

"Not really…"

She was really worried now.

'My dreams were always of the future… but do my powers still work? After all, I am on the Planet now… I really hope my powers don't work…' she thought fervently.

There came knocking from downstairs. Vincent tried to sit up.

"Ahem…"

"Oh… sorry…"

She got off of Vincent and he left the bed. A while later, he returned.

"Get ready. We're going to Midgar."

"Okay."

With that, Vincent left downstairs to prepare breakfast.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The Highwind touched down outside of Nibelheim. They climbed aboard and was greeted by Cid.

"-bleep-! Who would've though the vamp would get a girl!"

Vincent glared at him. Cloud whispered in Cid's ear. Cid's face lit up in understanding.

"Ohh… sorry, Vince… um… don't kill me… please…"

"You're a vampire?" Sera whispered.

"No." He growled.

The Highwind jerked into the air. Sera gripped Vincent's arm in fear. She looked even more terrified as she looked out the window at the passing scenery. Vincent told her that nothing was going to happen so she might as well sleep. But, of course, she couldn't, and spent the rest of the trip standing near Vincent, unused to all the new faces. They reached Wutai and Yuffie ran onto the ship.

"AHHH!" Yuffie screamed. "The vampire got a girlfriend! The end of the world's coming! The apocalypse is nigh!"

Sera looked slightly disturbed as the young ninja ran around in circles.

"Yuffie. She is not my girlfriend." Vincent explained this time.

"Oh… urk… see ya…"

She dashed off to the cargo hold. Vincent told Sera that Yuffie always acted that way. He then introduced her to the rest of the crew. She looked slightly happier as her eyes paled. They entered Cosmo Canyon at about midday. Nanaki and a black female entered the room. She was black as the night and on her tail blazed a cold blue flame. Tifa cried out in delight.

"Nanaki! You found a mate! What's her name?"

"You may call me Moonlight." She said.

"Hmm… fitting name." Cloud nodded in approval.

"And who are you?" Nanaki asked Sera.

"Fate Sera." She replied.

"Oh… a fate?" Nanaki looked confused. "Aren't you supposed to be in the Holy city?"

"I was banished." She said sadly.

"Well, we'll do everything we can to help you."

Sera smiled, bent down, and hugged him. They continued on to Corel. Barret and Marlene boarded the ship.

"I gotta leave her with Elmyra again… you better have a good reason for getting us away from our homes."

"I told you already, Barret." Tifa said exasperated.

"Whatever."

Barret introduced himself to Sera. His gun arm seemed to freak her out more than she already was. She hid behind Vincent as Barret apologized for frightening her. Finally, they reached Midgar. Rebuilt after the Meteor incident, it now ran off giant solar panels, courtesy of Reeve. They landed in the airport and disembarked. Sera looked at the huge city in awe. They went to the Presidential office.

"You again…" Reno muttered, then, brightening, said, "Who's the pretty lady?"

He flashed Sera his best smile and gave her a wink. She twitched and gripped Vincent tighter, eyes darkening. Elena whacked him and Reno scowled, turning back to the others.

"What do you fools want anyway?"

"We're here to see Reeve." Vincent said.

"Whatever." Reno let them in.

A giant stuffed moogle hopped out to greet them. Sera giggled slightly as parade music erupted from it.

"Hiya!" He said.

"Is Reeve here?" Cloud asked.

"Yep! Right this way!"

They found Reeve talking on the phone.

"Oh, um… some guests have arrived… can I call you back?… thanks… bye."

He hung up the phone and smiled at them.

"Welcome, friends."

"You don't remember our names do you?" Cloud said.

Reeve shifted uncomfortably.

"Umm…"

A small, live, black cat leapt onto the desk with a piece of paper in its mouth.

"Oh, thank you, Cait Sith." He glanced at the paper. "Cloud, Tifa, Vincent, Barret, Cid, Yuffie, and Nanaki."

"Cheater…" Cloud muttered.

"When are we gonna go see Auntie 'Myra?" Marlene asked from atop Nanaki's head.

"In a little while. Let Uncle Cloud finish talking."

Cloud sighed and introduced Moonlight, Sera, and Marlene. Then he explained about the crisis.

"It's a possibility that after Envy has taken over the Holy city, he will gather his forces and attempt to take over the Planet."

"I see. So what do you want me to do?"

"Can you build something similar to the coffin Vincent stayed in? Something that will keep our bodies form deteriorating when we die."

Reeve choked on a bit of coffee.

"What! Die!"

"Yes. It's the only way to get there with the technology we have."

"So how many do you need?"

"We need nine."

"You realize that there is a possibility to die in the Holy city and be sent into rebirth?"

"Yes."

"Okay. I will get on it. In the meantime, Barret can take Marlene to Elmyra and the rest of you can wander around the newly built Midgar!" Reeve said with pride.

The group wandered off through the streets of Midgar. Barret took Marlene and left her with Elmyra.

"I'm going on another mission."

"Really? To where?"

"The Holy city."

"Hmm…"

"Yes?"

"Do you think you'll meet Aeris there?"

"It's a possibility."

"Can you give her this?"

"Sure."

Barret took the crystalline necklace and placed it safely in his bag, wondering how many people they'd see in the Holy city.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: Okay! The next chapter will be just about them wandering around Midgar. It will be a connecting chapter and will be fairly short but afterwards, it will be a chapter on them entering the Holy city! Stay tuned!


	6. Midgar

Me: sniff… so many reviews… I'm touched! Yay! Runs around in circles. Wow. I think this story is catching on faster than The Forgotten! Read that too, if you like this! This chapter's gonna be short… it's just a connecting chapter… I just threw a couple of my extra ideas into it… obviously it takes a while to make the machines to preserve their bodies, even with their technology… so… yeah… umm… oh yeah… Reviewers get cookies! Sorry for not updating... i was trying to finish my summer reading. Bah!

Special thanks to: AncientDirgeDragon! Thanks for reminding me to add in people's thoughts and feelings! I had completely forgotten!

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 4 – Midgar

Cloud, Tifa, and Barret stood around outside of the newly built sector seven. People laughed and children yelled as they went on with their daily lives.

"Brings back so many memories huh?" Barret said.

"Yeah…"

They wandered the streets of Midgar, admiring Reeve's work and reminiscing about the past. There were so many memories around every corner. The City Hall, built upon the ruins of the Shinra building, still held an air of power. Every member had some memory of Shinra, whether directly or indirectly. They went into the newly built bar. Phoenix Rising, it was called. Sitting down, they ordered some drinks.

"Remember when we first started?" Barret said after a while.

"Yeah…"

"Cloud?"

"What?"

"What… what if… what if we lose? I mean… we don't know much about the enemy… what if he's stronger than the enemy?"

"Well, we have to do our best… there's no use worrying about the future. What happens will happen and we have to do our best to make the best of it."

"Real reassuring."

"Well…"

"Do you think we'll meet Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie there?"

"I dunno. Sera said it was hard to find people there. But don't worry. We'll search for people we know in our free time."

" 'Myra wants me to give this to Aeris." He said, holding out the diamond necklace. "You want to give it to her?"

Cloud shook his head.

"Naw… you can."

"What if we don't meet her there?"

"Barret… your 'what if' questions are getting annoying." Tifa said.

"Sorry…"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The groups eventually separated to do various shopping and whatnot. Vincent and Sera made their way to a small café. He explained the whole Meteor incident to the best of his ability.

"And afterwards, Holy hit Meteor, but it wasn't stopping. Then lifestream burst out of the ground and incinerated Meteor."

"And it was all blamed on me…" Sera muttered sadly.

"Stop worrying about it. We'll help you clear your name."

"How are you so sure about that? You don't know how strong they are! I… I don't want to put you guys in danger…" she whispered, remembering her dream.

"We'll find a way." He said surely. "Come on. I promised to teach you how to use the pistol."

He led her off to a firing range. Throughout the next few days, he taught her how to hold, aim, and fire without hurting herself. She learned fairly quickly and could soon hit moving targets square in the head. Vincent was amazed at her accuracy. It was beginning to rival his own.

"Good job." He said. "Just keep in mind how many bullets you have. You need to know when you should hide and reload."

"But I don't have money…"

"I'll buy you more bullets when you need them."

"But… that's not right…"

"It's fine. You go on ahead. I need to purchase more ammo. I'll get some for you too."

Sera watched as Vincent walked off to the store. She headed back to the inn. It was getting dark and it would be nightfall soon. Along the way, a voice called out from an alleyway.

"Hey! Check out the cutie!" One said.

"Hey baby… come 'ere for a second…" the other said.

They were obviously drunk. Sera walked faster.

"Hey, Jack. The chick doesn't seem to like you…"

"We'll see 'bout that…" he walked up behind her. "Come on… it'll be fun…"

"Please, let go." Sera said, eyes darkening.

He grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards his friend.

"Hehehe…" he muttered. "A virgin, eh? This ought ta be fun…"

"Let me go!" Sera demanded, drawing her pistol.

"Ooh… girl's got spunk!" The man said.

However, Sera had been paying attention to the man in front of her. The man behind grabbed her arm and twisted painfully. There was a loud snap as the gun fell from her limp hand and she cried out in pain. Her eyes were turning black at a tremendous rate as the two men closed in on her. The first guy, Jack, shoved her to the ground.

"You'll enjoy this…" he whispered as his hand started to creep down her pants. "An' if ya don't… well… I will…" he laughed.

"Stop…" she whispered, nearly unconscious with pain.

Jack started to pull down her pants while the other man held her down. There was a loud roar as the other man cried out in pain. This was followed by a gurgle of one choking on their own blood. Jack looked up… to see the barrel of the Death Penalty. There was a click, the gun fired, and Jack's world became a sea of red fading to black.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Vincent walked out of the shop. It hadn't taken long so Sera couldn't be far.

"Sera?" He called out.

He got no response.

"Vincent." Moonlight padded up behind him. "What are you doing?"

"I was with Sera in the firing range. I was buying more bullets so she went ahead. Now I can't find her… Where's Nanaki?"

"He's sleeping."

"Can you help me find Sera? She couldn't have gone far."

"I smell her. But I also smell liquor and two others…"

"Where?"

"That way."

They ran off down the street. As they neared an alleyway, they heard a loud snap followed by a cry.

"Sera!" Vincent growled.

They turned the corner to see two men holding down Sera, one of her arms bent at an odd angle. Moonlight gave a loud roar and leap at the man holding Sera's arms. She ripped at his jugular vein and he fell with a gurgle. Vincent ran walked up to the man and shot him in the head. Then he turned to Sera. She was crying and holding her broken arm.

"Sera, what happened?"

"They… grabbed me… my arm… it hurts…" she moaned.

Vincent rummaged through his bags. He pulled out a full cure. He cast the spell and it engulfed her. She whimpered as the bone straightened with a crack.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes… Thank you, Vincent…"

"You should be thanking Moonlight. She's the one that found you."

"Thank you so much…" Sera embraced Moonlight.

"It was nothing…"

"Let's go before any more trouble comes."

They left the two dead men and walked back to the inn.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Cid sat with Nanaki. He had woken the feline out of boredom. Now they sat talking.

"Hey, fuzzy. What do you think it'll be like? Dying?"

"Don't call me that. I don't know. We have all experienced near death at certain points during the Meteor incident. I suppose it will just be taking that a step further. Perhaps we'll be unconscious."

"So, fuzzy. Why are we going to the Holy city anyway? It has nothing to do with us."

"We all owe Cloud a big favor. He's the one that actually defeated Sephiroth and Jenova. If he hadn't, they might have risen again."

"Oh… I see, fuzzy. So we're doing this as repayment?"

"Not really… I was just bored and wanted to see the Holy city…"

"Great, fuzzy."

"I'm not going to talk to you if you're going to continue calling me that."

"Sorry, fuzzy…"

"…" Nanaki walked away.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Later that night, Sera climbed into bed, thinking about the day. There was a knock at the door.

"Yes?" She opened the door to find Vincent there.

"I'm sorry about today…" Vincent said, noticing that her eyes were still dark gray.

"Why?"

"I shouldn't have let you go alone."

"It's not your fault…"

"Yes, it is. I thought that the city was safer than it once was. It appears that I was wrong."

"Vincent, you know I don't blame you… so don't blame yourself."

Vincent stayed silent for some time.

"I got you something." He said and pulled out a case.

"What is it?"

"Open it."

It was another pistol. The smooth ivory color clashed with the sleek black Turks pistol she had. On the side was engraved the word 'Angel.' She held it in awe. It fit in her palm slightly better than the other one.

"You… you didn't have to…"

"I forgot to teach you to watch opponents close to you. Sometimes, you'll find yourself surrounded. You can use both at the same time." He handed over six clips and a bag of ammo. "Three for each. There's a thousand bullets. Each clip holds ten rounds."

"T-thank you…" she hugged him.

"You can go back to sleep now." He turned and left.

Sera smiled slightly, eyes paling. She went back to her bed and lay down, holding the ivory gun in her hand. It was a beautiful piece of work. She soon fell asleep, still gripping the gun.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: Like I said… just a connecting chapter…

Preview for the next chapter:

_They opened their eyes. They were finally in the Holy city. Except something was different.  
"Are we missing someone?"  
He counted. Thirteen people… wait. Thirteen? Cloud did a double take._

"_What the…? Who the hell are you!"_

Me: Ah Hahaha! Cliffhanger! I'm so evil! Wait for the next chapter! This may seem evil… but I expect at least five to ten more reviews, cuz there's so many people that could read this but don't review! So click that pretty purple button! …or else…hehehe…I WON'T POST CHAPTER FIVE! AH HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Men in White Suits: Get him!

Me: AHH! (Runs away)


	7. Arrival

Me: Thank you reviewers! Geez! I actually said, 'holy shit!' when I came back two hours later from tennis and saw that my reviews had jumped from seventeen to twenty-three. This story is far from over… let's just say this is the icing of the cake… hehehe… And now… you shall get the surprise of your life! … ready? … drumroll… CHAPTER FIVE! WHAT A GREAT SURPRISE!

(Audience throws things at Zetsumei)

Me: You know what? I just realized that I've been writing Final Fantasy – Exile instead of Final Fantasy VII – Exile… well it stuck so… yeah… on another note, just like the important note said, SCHOOL STARTS, UPDATES SLOW DOWN! Boo!

To Emri: Yay! A new reviewer! (even though you're anonymous… you do know that membership to fanfiction is free right? Sometimes I wonder…) anyway. Umm… sorry for not explaining too clearly… umm… crap… how to say this without pissing off other readers… **Basically, Sera is living a half-mortal life… I know the judge said mortal, but anyway. She cannot kill herself, she can be killed, she can feel pain (that's the whole point of the banishment), but she will continue living.** Yeah… I think I covered everything… sorry to all readers… but it's kinda late to change it now… soo… yeah… you guys do whatever you wish… created little voodoo dolls of me and throw me in a shredder… yell at me… send me hate mail… whatever.

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 5 – Arrivals

Three weeks had passed since they arrived at Midgar. Reeve had immediately place orders for manufacturing nine machines for the group. He himself would stay and keep watch over their bodies as they conducted their business in the Holy city.

"The machine will basically stop your heart." Reeve explained. "Then it will proceed to do the same exact thing Vincent's coffin did and keep your bodies in stasis."

"Alright." Everyone muttered.

"In case of an emergency, like lets say for some freak reason that this building were to explode, we can pull you out of the machine and your souls will return to your bodies."

"Alright."

They stepped into the containers.

"Ready?" Reeve called through the glass.

They nodded. Reeve walked behind a control panel and started pushed several buttons and typing on the keyboard. He gave them the thumbs up sign as white gas started to pour into the chamber. Sera looked at it, alarmed, but upon seeing that everyone, especially Vincent, trusted this man, relaxed. She felt a sharp pain in her chest and coughed. Her vision became blurry as the white gas continued to pump into the chamber. She felt like she fainted but was still completely conscious. Her mind was fuzzy and clear at the same time. Then, with a tearing sensation, she saw herself leave her body. There was a bright light. She had experienced this before, but was still completely unused to it. It felt as it she was being ripped apart and reassembled at the same time. The world spun and she shut her eyes. The next thing she knew, a hand was on her shoulder.

"Sera?"

"Vin…cent?"

"We're here."

She opened her eyes and saw a familiar scene. A bright landscape with walls leading into the city. Of course, as she had done a century ago, they arrived outside of the Holy city. The walls seemed to stretch into space as the city expanded to the horizon. A tall man approached them.

"Welcome to the Holy city. I am Saint Peter, guardian of the gates." He said. "My, my, my… such an unlucky party…"

"Whatever do you mean?" Cloud asked.

"To die in a group of thirteen… what else?"

"Huh?"

"You died together… right?"

"There was only… nine…people…" Cloud faltered as he gazed upon the four newcomers.

He stared at the four. The first was a young boy. Around the same age as Yuffie and Sera. He didn't glance at the others but seemed content attempting to eat several matches at once. His hair was dark brown with red-orange at the ends. He wore a purple head band around his head, holding the hair back from his eyes. He was dressed in a shirt that had flames on the bottom and black pants. The second man poked him in the side, causing the boy to yelp in pain as he burned himself. The man was average in height, quite muscular, and sparks seemed to dance around his fists and up his arms. His dirty blonde hair was short and cropped and he wore a tight-fitting, white T-shirt that showed his muscles. He muttered something to the boy, causing him to jump and stare at the group. The third person was Wutain and had a katana and a wakizashi at left side. He stretched and looked at the group in mild interest. His long black hair was tied in a loose ponytail and he wore the traditional gi and hakama. The last person also had black hair that was spiked. A long saber leaned against him as he folded his arms in Vincent fashion. He was dressed in a long black cloak over official looking clothes. (A/N: Have you guessed who they are yet?)

"Who…?" Cloud sputtered.

Upon seeing the last figure, Sera ran from Vincent to the man.

"Chaos!" She shouted and hugged him.

"Sera. How are you?" He asked patting her on the head.

"If… that's Chaos…" Cloud started, staring at the others. "Then that would mean…" he pointed at the others.

"Galian Smith, at your service!" The boy said in an old fashion tone.

He bowed and winked at Yuffie.

"Eww! What a perv!" She screeched and hid behind Tifa.

"That's enough, Galian." The muscular man said whacking him.

"Ow! Damn you, Gigas! You always spoil my fun."

"Shut up, you. All your good for is setting things on fire."

"Oh, yeah? What do you do? Electrocute people? Oh, look! I'm Gigas! I'm so powerful and strong! I can beat anyone! Except I'm sissy enough to like flowers!" He danced around.

Gigas smacked him again, this time sending him to the ground and electrocuting him at the same time.

"Ow…" Galian whined again.

'Something I didn't need to know…' Vincent thought.

"Gomen nassai." The Wutain man said. "I apologize for my friend's behavior." He bowed in tradition.

"A-arigatou." Yuffie said nervously.

"Watashi wa Takari Shou. (If you're American, it's Shou Takari.) Also known as the Hellmasker… though somebody," at this, he glared at Chaos. "Stole my chainsaw…"

"Correction. Won. Win it back…" Chaos said calmly.

"Yusa kenta!" (spelling?)

"Great…" Vincent muttered. "Now I've got to deal with them in real life."

"Ahem…"

They turned to stare at Saint Peter, who had been standing patiently waiting for them to finish.

"The great General Chaos. I've heard a lot about you. I heard you died though…"

"It was…"

"And…" he took a double take. "Fate Sera! What are you doing here!" He growled, voice full of malice. "You were banished! You're not allowed in this city!"

"I'd like to see you try and stop her." Chaos said stepping in front of her.

"Yes… the great General Chaos. Well, things have changed, Chaos. We have stronger generals now…" he took out a small whistle and blew on it. "Prepare to meet our newest and strongest General!" Saint Peter, who was not acting very saintly at the moment, cackled and stepped away from the gate to allow a tall figure to walk through.

"What is it now, Peter?"

"Attack them! They're intruders!"

"How can non-demon's intrude here?"

He glanced at them, stepping into the light. Everyone gasped. The General's long silver hair cascaded past his shoulders and he carried the masamune with practiced ease.

"Sephiroth!" Cloud shouted.

"You…er… know these people?" Peter said meekly, cowering under his glare.

"Yes."

'Damn! Now we'll never get into the city!' Vincent thought, still feeling empty without the stupid demons in his head to argue with.

"Let them in." He said.

"What!" Saint Peter shouted. "Do you know that they have a banished person with them!"

"I'm sure they have a good explanation."

"Thanks, Seph!" Cloud said.

"No, it is I who should be thankful. You broke me from that evil woman's power. And there's someone who would like to see you. Quite a couple people actually."

"Who?"

"You'll see."

"But… but…" Saint Peter spluttered.

"Are you questioning my authority?"

"No! No! Of course not!"

"Then let them in. They'll be held under my responsibility."

"O-okay…"

Saint Peter reluctantly let the thirteen people into the city. They left down several streets.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Saint Peter walked back into the guardhouse. He opened the small closet door and dragged out Saint Peter. He swept his hand casually and the clothes disappeared off his body onto the other man's body. Blood red robes replaced the clothing as his facial appearance changed.

"Enjoy your stay in the Holy city… I'm sure you'll find it most… memorable…" Lord Envy strode out of the guardhouse and back to the House of Legends.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

They stood speechless in front of the crowd of people. In the fairly large house stood everyone they had known. Biggs, Wedge, Jessie, Aeris, Ifalna, Professor Gast, Cloud's parents, Tifa's parents, Lucrecia, Zack and even Tseng and several others they did not know.

"Oh gods, I missed you guys so much!" Tifa hugged her parents tightly.

"Lucrecia…" Vincent stared at his past love.

"Hey. How have you been living your life?"

"Fine."

"Good…"

"Hey, you guys…" Barret said, voice thick with emotion.

"Aeris…" Cloud stared at her.

"Hiya Cloud."

"MOM!" Yuffie cried as she flung herself into her mother's embrace.

"This my father, Seto, and my mother, Saina." (Gods… I can't remember if they said Nanaki's mother's name in the game or not… please tell me if you know…)

"Nice to meet you." Moonlight bowed.

"-bleep-! You guys done?"

"Aeris, 'Myra told me to give this to you." Barret handed over the necklace.

"Wow… thanks." She put it on.

"What are you doing here anyway?" Sephiroth asked.

"Corruption within the House of Legends." Chaos said. "So… you became a general pretty fast, eh?"

Sephiroth ignored him.

"So what's this about corruption?"

Chaos sighed at being unsuccessful at striking up friendly conversation.

"You know who Lord Envy is right?" He asked.

"Yes. The King's aid. What about him?"

"He's the one who summoned Meteor and put us through that whole crisis. We think he may be trying to overthrow the government."

"Ah." Sephiroth said. "So… any plans?"

"Heh… no." Chaos admitted.

"Um…" Sera said, catching everyone's attention. "I think we should tell the Creator… She's the only one who can overpower Envy…" (We'll just say the Creator's female… just to make it more interesting… betcha never saw that one coming…)

"Yes, but how will we get into the House of Legends? We're not even sure She lives there."

"It's worth a try. Chaos and Sephiroth should be allowed into the House quite easily."

"Okay. So, Sephiroth and Chaos try to get in. We'll wait here for the results."

Sephiroth and Chaos left the building and headed towards the House of Legends.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

They walked up the steps and entered through the huge wooden doors. Chaos led the way since he knew the place better. They entered the Hall of Officials. Rooms lined the wall, brass nameplates on each door marking certain rooms. Chaos remembered coming here often to visit Sera.

"That's far enough." A voice called out.

A figure walked out of the shadows. He had a gray goatee and long gray hair. In his right hand was a saber. Its pure steel blade and gold hilt flashed in the candlelight. He approached them, blade held ready.

"S-Samuel?" Chaos asked.

"How do you know me?"

"It's your old buddy, Chaos! Geez, I thought you died!"

"I know no one by the name of Chaos."

"General Samuel, you will please get out of the way. We have important business to attend to." Sephiroth said.

"Lord Envy has placed me on guard here saying that no one shall pass without his consent."

"Who's he to…" Sephiroth began.

"Seph… just go… I'll deal with this." Chaos said, face grim.

"What about you?"

"I'll deal with this." He repeated. "Go."

Sephiroth ran down the hall. Samuel instantly rushed to block Sephiroth's path, blade raised to strike. A loud clang filled the hall. Chaos's black saber was in hand and pushing Samuel's back with some difficulty.

"Chaos… let me h…"

"GO!" He roared.

Sephiroth turned and continued running.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

There was a knock on the door.

"Man…" Cloud got up to answer the door.

They had been swapping stories since Chaos and Sephiroth left. Cloud had been halfway through telling what it was like being under Jenova's control. He opened the door. An armed guard stood there.

"Is Vincent Valentine, Fate Sera, Tifa Lockheart, and Cloud Strife?"

"Yes… why?" Cloud said cautiously.

"You have been charged with conspiracy and bringing a banished person into the city. You four are the leaders as noted by our Lord Envy. You will now come with us to stand trial."

"Wait!" Sera cried, getting frightened. "Hear us out! It's a mistake! Envy's the one…"

The guard backhanded her.

"Show your respect! It's Lord Envy!"

Vincent growled slightly.

"Will you come peacefully?"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sephiroth tore down the hall. He had to trust that Chaos would keep Samuel at bay. He entered a giant room. At the far end was a door. He guess it would lead to the Creator. He ran towards it. He suddenly found himself surrounded by guards, all armed with electro-rods. One of them stepped forward.

"General Sephiroth. You have been charged with treason against the Creator Herself. Your accomplices have already been detained. You will now come peacefully or we will use force."

Sephiroth started to laugh.

"All you weaklings against me! What a terrible joke! That Envy bastard must be high if he thinks I'll come quietly!"

With that, he drew his masamune and charged into the ranks.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: And that's the end of that chapter! Gods… I have so many freakin' ideas for this story! I just want to keep typing! … but it's midnight and I'm tired… so nighty night!

Some Japanese translations… for those who don't know…

Arigatou/Arigato: Thank you

Watashi wa…: My name is/I am

Gomen (nassai): Sorry(really sorry)

Yusa Kenta: Don't fuck with me. (I honestly have not seen this used in any fic… I'm just writing it as it's pronounced… I think)

Next chapter(it's gonna be long…just to let you know…):

_Sera screamed in terror. It was all becoming real. The whole dream! The judge glared at her._

"_Fate Sera. So we meet again. We'll I'll give you the pleasure of being last."_

"_Wait! Please! You have to listen! It's all Envy's doing! These guys are innocent! PLEASE!"_

"_A likely tale. First execution, Cloud Strife."_

_The guards approached him…_

Me: Wait for the next chappy! Once again. five to ten reviews gets another chappy! You guys did really well on that last chappy! THANKS A BUNCH!


	8. Captured

Me: Hey! How're ya doin' this night!

Audience: Boo! Get off the stage!

Me: Yeah? Well, you can go to hell! (Snaps fingers) (guy disappears) ANYONE ELSE WANT A GO? (just finished watching Constantine… feeling evil…)

Sera: (whispers in ear) I think you're overdoing it…

Me: Oh… okie… (walks off)

Note: Don't know if I already said this, but this story is about one eighth done…? Maybe… somewhere around there… if I get more ideas, the story might become longer… you could write what you think will happen in reviews… yah. Storu will get pretty good... soon... in about three-four chapters.

To Devil-Angel: Yay! Another new reviewer! Glad you like it so far!

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 6 – Captured

"Will you come peacefully?"

"We have done nothing wrong." Vincent said.

"I have stated the charges. Would you like to hear them again?"

"No."

"Then, will you come peacefully?"

"Yes."

"Vincent!" Sera hissed. "What are you doing!"

"I'm sorry. I promised Chaos you would come to no harm."

"Yes, Chaos." The guard sneered. "I'm sure he's been taken care of."

Sera gasped.

"You bastard!" She screamed drawing both pistols and aiming.

The guard instantly swung his spear, knocking her guns aside. Vincent instantly whipped out his Death Penalty and shot the guard. He gasped for a moment, almost happy, and vanished. There was a cry.

"Get them!"

"Get out of here!" He directed the others in the house. "If we're captured, they want us anyway! No use for you to get caught!"

Cloud drew his Ultima Weapon.

"Bring it on!" He shouted.

They rushed in, spears held ready. Vincent fired at those coming in and Cloud attacked those who got by. Sera was still struggling to find her lost weapons and Tifa was watching her back. Tifa let out a cry as a guard struck her. She tumbled to the ground. Sera looked at the in fright. Her hand brushed something metallic. It was the smooth grip of the Angel. She couldn't believe it. What incredible luck. But it was also unfortunate. She had never killed a person before. Time seemed to stop as she raised the gun in her trembling hands. She paused slightly, finger resting on the trigger, and pulled. The shot hit the man in the forehead, just as she'd been taught. Her eyes darkened at the deed she had done, but paled when she realized that the man was still alive! It didn't take her long before she realized that Vincent had replaced her bullets with knock-out gas capsules. She'd have to thank him later. Now, more guards were coming into the room. She grabbed her other pistol and fired at the man standing above Tifa.

"Thanks!" She said.

The continued to fight the guards. Space was getting limited due to the number of bodies lying around. The guards seemed endless and their strength and stamina were fading fast. More guards rushed into the room and grabbed Sera, Cloud, Tifa, and Vincent. They relieved them of their weapons.

"Hey! Get your hands off me!" Tifa cried.

"No…" Sera whispered. "This isn't happening! This can't be happening!"

"Come on. The judges are waiting."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

This was getting annoying.

"Is that the best you got!" Sephiroth shouted as he killed three more guards and whirled to kill another two. "Bring it on!"

The guards seemed endless. He had lost count of them after two hundred. There was a loud clapping. Everyone froze at the sound. Lord Envy walked down the steps.

"Lord Envy!" The guards shouted, bowing.

"You…" Sephiroth muttered.

"You are as good as they say… maybe even better. Well, we can't have you killing any more guards, now can we?" He said walking down the steps. "Bind." He said, snapping his fingers.

The rock floor melted up to encase his body.

"D-damn you! Fight me like a man!"

"I'll save that for the guards."

The guards rushed in. The next thing he felt was a thousand volts jolting up his body. Then, all faded into darkness.

"Take him away." Envy said.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Their blades clashed in the dim lighting of the hallway. Their forms melded and separated faster than the blink of an eye.

"You're pretty good, kid."

"You should remember. We fought once."

Their blades clashed. Both leapt away.

"Why do you keep insisting I know you! I have never met you in my entire life!"

"Oh, really? When did you die?"

"Seventy-three years ago."

"Ah… that would explain it."

"You will submit! Lord Envy demands it!"

"So, you don't remember anything… then let me remind you!"

Chaos dashed forward swinging his saber. With a yell, he swung the sword with both hands. The resulting force split Samuel's blade in two. Unfazed, Samuel ducked the second attack and leapt forward, throwing an uppercut. Chaos flew back with a grunt and landed heavily on the floor. Samuel stood over him.

"Heh… you were always better than me…"

Samuel knocked Chaos out and dragged him away.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"So, we meet again." The judge glared at Sera.

"We have done nothing wrong!" Sera shouted at the man.

She was terribly frightened for her friends. They didn't know what was coming and she did.

"I warned you about coming back, did I not?" The judge asked. "And now you bring people here and tell them that there's corruption here? You sicken me, Fate Sera. You can have the honor of being last to die." He spat.

"But it's true! Envy tried to…"

"Silence! I will hear no more." He turned his gaze on the other three. "Though you have not been accused of conspiracy, this bitch takes all the blame for that, you have been accused of killing guards. In light of the fact that you did it under the conviction that it was just, you shall not be sent to hell. Your rebirth ritual will commence now. Cloud Strife. You are first."

The guards walked up to him and started to drag him away. He struggled. Tifa was crying. Sera was screaming. It was all coming trued. She clutched her head and tried to block out Cloud's shouting.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Samuel threw Chaos next to the unconscious form of Sephiroth.

"Good work. I trust he wasn't too much trouble?" Envy asked.

"No, sir."

"Good. You are dismissed. The trial should be finished soon."

"Thank you, sir."

Samuel walked off back to his room. He sat down on the bed, thinking.

"It's your old buddy, Chaos! Geez, I thought you died!"

'He acted as if he knew me… but I've never seen him before…' he thought.

"You should remember. We fought once."

'When?'

"Let me remind you!" The clang of a sword breaking in two.

His memory fuzzed and refocused. This time, it was him standing over Chaos, two swords in hand. He threw one into the air and swung the other one, cutting it in two. Samuel clutched his head in agony.

'W-what is this! This never happened before!'

"When did you die?"

'Seventy-three… was it?' He tried to remember his earliest memories.

"I remember waking up in a white room." He said. "There was blood on the floor and a giant circle in the middle. Envy said that's how I got here and the blood was from the battle I was in… what battle? All souls are supposed to go through Saint Peter… why didn't I?"

"You were always better than me…"

'Always… what does he mean!' He clutched his head.

It had started to ring and hurt badly.

"Who are you!" He shouted.

Flashes of his past flew by.

'_You're a hundred years too early, boy!'_

_The sharp clang of a sword cut in two._

'_Hey! I knew you'd make it someday! Name's Samuel.'_

'_Chaos.'_

_An upcoming battle._

'_Hey, Samuel! We're gonna win, no problem, eh?'_

'_Yep.'_

_A large purple demon._

'_Wait! Samuel! It's me! It's all Envy's doing! Stop him!'_

'_I will not deny it. It was all me.'_

_The cold plunge of a blade._

'_No! Wait! What are you doing!'_

_His hands had burned in pain when he destroyed the spell circle._

'_We're friends, right?'_

Samuel screamed as he regained his past memory at a tremendous rate.

"ENVY!" He roared.

He bolted up and rushed out of the room. He darted as fast as his legs would carry him to the court. He passed a cloaked man, accidentally bumping into him.

"I'm sorry, sir. Are you alright?"

The cloaked man appeared to be cripple. He looked stupidly at Samuel.

"Eh?" He said in a voice that suggested he was deaf as well.

Samuel continued to run. Some time passed and the man continued to stand there. He shrugged his shoulders and continued to walk.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Let me go!" Cloud struggled.

The guard smacked him.

"Foolish boy! Don't you know what an honor it is to be reborn! Many people would give their entire families to get the privilege!"

"God dammit! Why won't you listen to her!"

"We refuse to listen to an outsider."

They walked into the room.

"Enjoy the new life you've been granted."

They raised their swords, ready to strike.

"Wait!"

Samuel burst into the room.

"Lord Envy wishes the prisoners to be brought to him."

"There was no order!" A guard said.

The two guards glared at him.

"He just commanded it."

"Let's see a note of approval."

"It… it was urgent… there was no note…"

"What's it for?" The guard glared at him accusingly.

"Do you dare argue with your general?"

"Correction, you are not our general… we serve Lord Envy alone. We follow his direct orders."

"Um… well, it's Lord Envy's wish that the prisoners were taken to him."

"How can we believe that?"

"You have my word… as a general."

"Ha!" The guard laughed. "You? You're word… as a general…?" He laughed. "Hey, Envy never told this guy!"

The other guard chuckled.

"Don't you remember what happened seventy-three years ago?… oh wait, haha… you wouldn't…"

"What with seventy-three years ago?"

"Haha… did you never ask Envy why you awoke in a white room?"

"Why?" Though Samuel had a good feeling why, he asked, just to make sure.

"Hahaha… That was your death-day!" The guard burst out laughing.

The other guard joined in laughing. They turned around, ready to execute Cloud. Samuel rushed up to the first guard and grabbed his sword.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing!"

"Stopping you…"

With a sharp crack, Samuel broke the man's arm, picked up the guard's sword and decapitated him. The other guard turned instantly and charged at Samuel. With the grace of a butterfly, Samuel spun around the guards blade, grabbing onto the man's dominant sword hand. He twisted violently and the blade fell into his waiting left hand. Then, he shifted behind the guard and slashed out at his unprotected back. The guard fell with another cry.

"W-what!" Cloud finally managed to sputter.

"I'll explain later. We've got to get your friends out of there."

They put on the guards' clothes and picked up the bloodied swords. They walked back into the court. Cloud felt a pang of guilt at the two girls crying and Vincent's furious glare, but he kept the façade.

"Tifa Lockheart." The judge said.

They took her out of the room. Cloud gave her arm a reassuring squeeze but she just glared at them. They reached the execution room. It was still covered in blood and Tifa started to cry again.

"Tifa!" Cloud hissed.

"C-Cloud!" She hugged him fiercely.

"Shh… we have to go back for the others."

She nodded. Samuel took some water and mixed it with the blood already on their blades. Then he and Cloud went back into the room, their swords trailing bloodied water. It looked convincing enough. The judge smirked at their reappearance.

"Almost your turn, bitch." He said to Sera. "Vincent Valentine."

They approached Vincent. He suddenly leapt up and tackled Cloud. Samuel had predicted something like this happening and whacked Vincent from behind with the butt of his sword. He fell unconscious and they dragged him out, carefully wiping the blood water away as not to draw attention if someone were to look closely. Sera seemed frightened and confused as Vincent disappeared.

"So, any last words?"

She stayed silent.

"You were talking so much I'd expect you'd say something…"

The two guards came back in.

"Goodbye. This is your final warning. Three strikes and your out. Come back and you go straight to hell."

The guards grabbed her.

"Let me go!"

They ignored her and continued to lead her to the execution room. They took her inside and closed the door.

"Sera!" Tifa whispered.

"Tifa?"

"Are you alright?"

"Vincent!" She cried and flung her arms around him.

"What's the matter?"

"Oh, gods… I had a vision that this happened! I was so scared."

Cloud and Samuel took off their suits.

"Thank you so much…" Sera said to them.

"Who are you anyway?" Cloud asked.

"The name's Samuel."

"Chaos's friend." Vincent stated.

"Damn!" Samuel cursed.

"What is it?"

"Chaos is still imprisoned!" Samuel said.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Bolts of electricity sparked through their bodies, causing them to twitch in pain.

"Geez! You never cease to amaze me, Chaos." Envy cackled. "I thought they killed freaks like you down on the Planet!"

"Up yours, ya old geezer."

He cried out in pain as an extra thunderbolt hit him.

"You were always too cocky for your own good…" he sneered at him.

"Envy, the Creator will never let you get away with this!" Sephiroth gasped.

More electricity.

"Ha! Her? She spends the whole damned day in Her room! What the hell does She do in there anyway!"

"She'll find out eventually…"

"Hmph. That's highly unlikely. I'd love to stay and chat, but I must speak with the judge now."

He left in a swirl of his cloak.

"Dammit!" Sephiroth muttered.

They sat in silence for some time.

"Wanna play I Spy?" Chaos asked.

"Shut up."

The door opened again. This time, it was not Envy. It was a strange cripple. He limped into the room and glared down at the two.

"What do you want, crip?"

"Eh?"

"Great… he's deaf too."

Sephiroth sighed and leaned back against the wall.

"He probably lost his way around here."

"Hey, the door's that way!" Chaos gestured with his head at the door. "Go!"

"Eh?"

"Geez… this is hopeless… what an idiot…"

"You two seem to be in a bit of trouble…" the man said.

"No kidding…"

"Ya know? I could let that man in the cloak dispose of you…"

"Look, geezer. You're not helping. Shoo!"

"Really?"

"Wait…" Sephiroth glared at the man. "I thought you couldn't hear?"

"Damn… I knew I'd slip sometime…"

"Who are you?" Sephiroth asked accusingly.

The man dropped his crutch and walked, quite smoothly, over to the two. He produced a small pick and undid the chains around them.

"Who are you?" Chaos asked warily.

"Man… seventy-six years and you forget?" The man chuckled.

He threw back his hood.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: Cliffy! Guess who it is! Review or no next chappy! Sorry no preview... must write.


	9. Envy

Mob: Lynch him! Lynch him! (hold little noose with Zetsumei doll on it)

Me: AHHH! Wait! Wait! Wait! Don't kill me!

Mob: What!

Me: I bring you good news!

Mob: …

Me: I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance by switching to Geico! AH HAHAHAHAHAHAA!

Mob: …

Me: …

Mob: GET HIM!

Me: AHHHH! Here's chapter seven!

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: Sorry for the huge wait… I can only type in my free time now… But hey! It's Chapter seven! Need… more… reviews… I only got like three for the last one… or something like that… anyway. Hope you enjoy this chapter. I'll try to slow things down… it's just that I don't want people getting bored and losing interest. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 7 – Envy

"Man… seventy-six years and you forget?" The man chuckled.

He threw back his hood. Dark brown hair cascaded in a tight ponytail and thin glasses hung at the edge of his nose. Laugh lines creased his eyes and slightly at the corners of his mouth. At his side was an ancient pistol and a thin rapier. Though the sword looked flimsy, Chaos knew the skill of the owner firsthand.

"Derik!" Chaos shouted.

"Yes, you worthless student. Gods… I must've been on drugs when I agreed to teach you! Look where it got you!"

"Can you just shut up and lead us out of here!"

"Why? After all, I'm just 'some stupid crip,' right?"

"Ergh… you…"

"Please, sir. Lord Envy might come back any minute." Sephiroth said.

"Yeah, yeah…"

They quickly rushed out of the room and left the House of Legends. Along the way, Chaos stopped them.

"What about Sera and the others!" He asked quickly.

"I'm sure that general took care of them."

"What general?" Sephiroth asked.

"Um… lessee here… he had gray hair and a goatee. Sound familiar?"

"Samuel!" Chaos turned back.

"Come on, stupid pupil! We don't have time for that! In about three minutes, all of the soldiers in the Holy city will be after us!" He grabbed Chaos.

"But I can't just leave her!" He struggled in his teacher's grip.

Derik gave Chaos a quick chop to the neck and Chaos collapsed.

"Carry him, won't you. I'm a little too old for that sort of thing."

Sephiroth lifted him onto his back and, together, they ran out of the city.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"We have to save him!" Sera said. "Who knows what Envy might do to him!"

"Okay. I know where he and Sephiroth are being held."

With that, they grabbed their weapons off a nearby shelf. Samuel dashed out of the execution chamber and ran down the hall. The other four followed. They took several turns before reaching a door marked, 'Envy.'

"Here it is. Envy had me take them here."

"But why?" Sera asked, pain and distrust clear in her darkening eyes.

"I expect Envy had me under a spell of some sort. After he killed me…" he paused slightly. "He must've healed me before I went into rebirth and cast the spell over me."

"Oh…"

Samuel turned the doorknob. It was open.

"That's strange… Envy would've wanted the door locked in case anyone came in while he was torturing them."

"Maybe he forgot to lock it."

They went inside and looked around. Two heaps of chains lay on the ground in the middle of the room. There was no sign of Chaos or Sephiroth.

"They're not here." Cloud noted.

"State the obvious, won't you." Tifa muttered under her breath.

"Where are they?" Sera cried.

As of the moment, scary thoughts were running through her head, most of which depicted Chaos being sent to hell in the most painful way manageable. Slow decapitation, burning, whipped to death, skinned alive. She shook her head.

"Let's go. My guess is that they escaped. The chains are still here."

"Oh, okay." Sera turned, and gasped.

"Well, well, well. Lose one gil, find a hundred."

They all whirled around to find Envy leaning casually against the doorway. His silvery robes hung limply as he grinned at them.

"You!" Sera screamed.

In a flash, she had drawn her pistols and fired. She was getting faster. Vincent barely caught her movement. The bullets stopped millimeters from his face. He chuckled coldly.

"Don't think those tricks will work here…"

"Where are they, Envy?" Vincent asked.

"My guess is as good as yours."

"Dammit, Envy! Where did you take them!" Samuel yelled.

"Now, now. No need to get violent. It would appear someone has released them. Was it you, Samuel?"

"Do you think I would be asking you if I did?"

"Well, no matter. I don't know how you survived the execution, but I'll deal with you myself."

With that, he strode into the room, the door slamming shut behind him.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"They're still there!" Chaos shouted several hours later.

They had reached the house to find that Cloud, Tifa, Vincent, and Sera weren't there.

"It would appear so." Derik said.

"We gotta go save them!"

"What? And get yourself killed in the process? No thanks." Takari, Hellmasker, said. (just get used to it)

"Takari's right." Gigas said. "We need a plan."

"How's about you run in there and knock down the building?"

A whack to Galian.

"Moreover," Chaos continued. "Where did everyone else go."

"They went into hiding when the guards attacked. Vinnie's orders."

"Ah."

"So, what are we going to do? There's gotta be hundreds of guards in there. There's no way we can just barge in there." Galian paused, thinking. "The Creator is our last hope. We need some way… perhaps a distraction so we can get in there…"

"Galian, you're a genius." Gigas said.

"What…?" Galian looked up to see everyone grinning at him. "Oh… no…"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sera opened her eyes to a dark and musty smell. She sat up and looked around. It was a simple cell. The walls were of mortar and stone, the floor, plain concrete. In the corner sat a musty cot, half eaten through years of moths. A dim light came from down the hall outside of the cell. Otherwise, it was pitch dark.

"Vincent?" She called out. "Cloud? Tifa?"

No answer. Just the echo as her voice bounced off the far wall and down the hall. She was alone. No one to talk to, no one to comfort her. She sat on the bed and wallowed in depression.

'_It's all your fault. You should've stopped them from helping you… then maybe you could be living happily down there… Dammit, Sera. It's all your fault. Why do you have to be so selfish? Think about others for a change!'_ A voice whispered to her.

'Shut up! I'll get them out!' Sera protested.

'_Hahahaha! That's hillarious! You! Weak, little you! You can't do anything at all! You're afraid to kill and you always count on others to rescue you! Looks like there's no one here for you now!'_ The voice laughed.

'No! I can do it! Vincent said I…' 

'_Yes… Vincent… sweet, loving Vincent…'_ the voice cackled. _'He'll probably be the first Envy kills! Just to spit you cuz you love him don't you!'_

'What! No!… it's just that… he's been kind to me… and…' 

'_And he's always rescuing you at the last second! Pathetic! Look at you! What will you do once Vincent's dead!'_ The voice shouted.

'NO!' She silently screamed. 'He won't die!' 

'_So he managed to escape one of your dreams! You'll have others! Especially since it was all thanks to you that he's here! Face it! He's gonna die!'_

'No! No! NO! He can't die! He'll survive! He's strong enough!"

'_Heh! Whatever happened to rescuing them! He'll die before you can even reach him!'_

The voice cackled madly with a high pitched laughter.

"NO!" Sera screamed in the darkness.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Vincent glared at Envy as stared back at him with piercing gray eyes. Envy smirked.

"So… you've gotten to know Sera pretty well, huh?"

"What have you done to her?"

"Oh nothing much…"

"Tell me the truth, dammit!" Vincent grabbed Envy by the collar.

"Nothing." Envy grinned in Vincent's face. "Plus, even if I didn't know you met Sera… well, I do now…" he chuckled.

Suddenly, a powerful force flung Vincent back against the wall. He coughed and blood trickled from the side of his mouth.

"You seemed to be the strongest out of the group… can you fight without your buddies and your demons?"

Vincent wondered how he knew.

"A duel then." He said waving his hands.

Two swords appeared out of thin air. One was pitch black with silver running along the length of the blade. It had a steel hilt with a fancy tassel hanging from the end of it. The other was steely silver with blood red engravings near the base of the blade. The hilt was a metallic red and had a normal hilt. Envy grabbed the black one.

"I swear on the sorcerer's code not to use magic. Just pure skill."

Vincent eyed the sword.

"There's nothing wrong with it."

He grabbed it. He wondered who would win. Due to Chaos residing in his head for such a long time, he knew how to use the sword fairly well. The only problem was that he didn't know how proficient the enemy was. He steadied the blade.

"Ready?" Envy said.

Envy vanished. Vincent barely caught the movement as his form flickered across his field of vision. He raised the sword and barely caught the enemy's blade out of sheer luck. For the first time since Hojo had shot him, he felt afraid. The kind of hopeless fear of fighting someone hundreds of times stronger than you. Envy disappeared once again. He reappeared and struck Vincent to the ground with the hilt. Vincent grunted in pain as the sword clattered away and he fell to the cold, stone floor.

"Is that it?" He asked mockingly. "Pick up your sword."

Vincent thought for a second. If he stayed laying there, Envy might get bored and throw him back in a cell somewhere. Then again, maybe he would just kill him out of boredom. Whereas, if he continued fighting, he would surely lose once he ran out of stamina. The situation looked grim. He gripped the handle of the sword tightly and staggered up.

"There we go." Envy said, almost happily. "Now, let's try this again… shall we?"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sera sat in her cold, dark cell. She had lost track of time after about three days. Nobody had talked to her and she hadn't met anyone yet. Just her and her tiny cell. She was beginning to give in. She was pretty sure Vincent was dead now and that they had just thrown her here to act as scapegoat for whenever they did something else. She caught a slight movement to left. A door opened and closed, followed by the shuffling of shoes and the sound of something heavy being dragged across the floor. Sera instantly hid in a shadowy corner, awaiting this unknown stranger.

"Having fun in here?" A familiar voice asked.

Envy walked into view, dragging…

"Vincent!" Sera screamed.

He was cut in many places. Some of the wounds had healed slightly, but others bled profusely. His blood cut a small river through the stone floor. His breath came in small gasps as he hung limp in Envy's grasp. He threw him inside.

"He's something." Envy commented. "Fought me for three and a half days before collapsing… I couldn't get him to stand so…"

He shrugged, ignoring Sera's hate-filled glare.

"Ta ta.." Envy said, walking away.

As he turned, a small knife fell out from the confines of his cloak. It clattered, quite noisily, to the ground. Envy paid no attention to it and continued walking.

"Vincent!" Sera cried, shaking him.

One blood red eye flickered open. Vincent let out a groan. He tried to sit up but Sera pushed him back down.

"You must rest! Oh… this is all my fault! If I hadn't…" she started weeping. "I'm so sorry, Vincent… I got you all in this mess!"

The bottled up emotions came free as she confessed her feelings to Vincent. He lay there, still, but listening. She seemed so helpless, but everything hurt to move. He wanted to comfort her, but he couldn't seem to sit up. So he listened in silence.

"I wish it wouldn't be like this… if I hadn't been so selfish as to ask you to help… you probably don't care about what happens to me now…" she buried her face in his bloodstained cloak. "Look where it got you… oh gods, Vincent…"

Vincent managed to muster up a last bit of strength. Sera cringed, thinking he was going to strike her. He placed his hand on her cheek.

"Sera, please… stop… It pains me to see you like this…"

"But… but…"

"Please… Sera…" he let his hand drop.

She continued to sit by his side, tears trickling down her face as Vincent slept.

'_See? What did I tell you?'_

'Shut up! Get out of my head!' 

'_Oh, but dear Sera! I am you!'_

'No you're not! You're nothing like me!'

'_Do you know that for a fact? Just how well do you know yourself?'_

Sera didn't have an answer for that one. She just sat there, pondering the last question.

'_Well, now what are you going to do? Your 'oh so powerful' savior is dead.'_

'He's not dead!' 'Close enough…' 'He's still alive!' 'Well, if he is, he'll probably not speak with you again…' 'But… he just…' 

'_He was delusional. He didn't know who he was talking to. He probably thought he was talking to his dead lover.'_

'Who?' 

'_Remember that woman he was talking to? Yeah… that's her.'_ The voice said as a mental image formed.

'She's Vincent's…?'

'_Lover.'_ The voice finished for her. _'He doesn't care about you at all.'_

'But he said my name…'

_'Big deal…'_

'But what do I do now…?' Sera asked hopelessly.

'_See that pretty little knife in the corner?'_

Sera looked over at the knife Envy dropped.

'What do you… no… NO!' Sera shouted at the voice. 'I can't do that!'

'_Why not? Vincent won't mind.'_

'Yes he will!'

_'No he won't. Think about it. Look at all the pain you've caused him…' _

Sera slowly edged toward the knife. She picked it up.

'But what about Cloud and Tifa… and Chaos?'

'_They're probably all dead or they'd be in the same cell as you.'_

Sera sat there staring at the knife.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Vincent gradually awoke, Hojo's experiments coming in good use for once. He sat up slowly. Some wounds still hurt but most had healed when he half faked unconsciousness. He looked around. He saw Sera sitting there, with a small knife in her hands. He watched in horror as she brought it over her heart.

"Sera!" He shouted.

She jumped, guilty at being caught.

"V-Vincent!"

"What do you think your doing?"

"Just let me die!" She cried. "I don't deserve to live anymore!"

She raised the knife once again. Vincent rushed over and grabbed it by the only place there was anywhere to grip. The blade.

"Stop!" He commanded.

Sera stared in shock and fear at the blood now dripping from Vincent's hands. Slowly, she dropped the blade. He flung it out of their cell, far out of reach.

"Vincent…" she cried.

He held her close.

"I'm sorry if I made you worry." He muttered. "Don't try that again. Ever."

"I…I feel so…so weak…" she stuttered.

He embraced her, patting her comfortingly. They sat there for a long time.

"It's not wise for the one who brought us here to help her to die." He finally said, smiling slightly.

"Sorry…"

"How did you end up here?"

"I…I don't know…"

"Envy must have put you here. Alone, the mind can do strange things." He muttered, thinking about his time in a coffin.

Sera stayed silent, thinking about the voice that had almost led her to kill herself.

"Do you know where Cloud and Tifa are?"

"They're…they're dead…" Sera whispered.

"No their not." Vincent said. "I figured you came to that conclusion. Their in the cell next to this one."

"But…how?"

"Envy must have put spells around the cells to make the sound trapped inside."

"Oh… Vincent, I'm sorry I got you all into this mess…"

"I don't blame you. We came here to help a friend."

A small smile made it's way onto her face.

"That's better." Vincent said. "Now… we wait and see what happens next."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Tom was a guard. He had lived a long time in the Holy city now. He died in a war and now served Lord Envy. He enjoyed his job. Bringing pain to others made him smile. To him, killing was just another game. He stood guard at the gates of the House of Legends. He had always been prepared for everything. What he wasn't ready for was a rectangular package flying at him. It hit him in the head and fell to the ground.

"What the…?"

The package was wrapped in brown paper. On the top, he saw a scribbled word. C-4. Coming from the medieval period, he had no clue what it was. He bent to pick it up. A huge explosion ripped through the building, blowing away desks in the small security office. Alarms went off. He smiled slightly. Everything was going according to plan.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: I hope I had more descriptions here… did you enjoy it? Review, please… five to ten or maybe just five… anything but three!

Preview for the next chapter:

_They fought their way into the building. The guards didn't stand a chance. They were like five demons ripping through the ranks. They headed down the hall. Down the familiar passage. To a door marked with a familiar nameplate. He kicked down the door and ran in. He grabbed him by the collar, pressing a blade to his thoat._

"_WHERE ARE THEY?" He growled._

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: And there you go! READ AND REVIEW! (I'm already writing the next chapter...)


	10. Attack

Me: School… killing… me……… (collapses)

Everyone else: YESS!

Me: HAH! I was kidding!

Everyone else: (grumbles)

Thank you reviewers! Glad you liked the last chapter! Geez, how long has it been… three weeks? A month? Sorry for the delay. My computer got a virus on it and it spread to an external hard drive. Unbeknownst to me, I put that hard drive into my laptop! GAH! I was afraid I lost all my stories! THAT WAS SCARY! Took several years off my life… haha…

To CloudLov3r: My first flame! Yay!… though it doesn't mean as much coming from someone who rarely says anything good… but hey! More reviews for me!

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

****Chapter 8 – Attack

The building shook and dust fell from the ceiling. This was followed shortly by screams and shouts.

"What the hell is going on!" One general shouted rushing to the demolished guard station.

"We don't know, sir!" A private ran up beside him and saluted. "There was an explosion a while ago."

"Tell me something I don't know!" He roared.

"Sir!" A special tasks officer approached him.

"What is it?"

"We found this in there." He held up the burnt bits of a package. "There was also this strange letter. It was intact."

The letter was undamaged. It was written in English. It said as follows.

"Look above you. Cheers!" after that was a smiley face plus the purple head of some beast breathing fire.

"What the…" the general muttered.

He looked up. All he could see was sky… but if it had been found in the building…

"Everybody get out!" He yelled to the men inside the rubble.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(Moments before)

Inside, the soldiers were looking around for anything that might lead to who set the bomb.

"Hey, I think I found something…" one soldier held up a small scrap of black fabric.

"Where did you get that?" The others crowded around to look at the peculiar material.

"It fluttered down." The first soldier said. "From up… there…"

The words died in his throat as he saw what was 'up there.' At least a dozen, maybe more, blocks of C4 were strapped together. The room fell silent and they could hear a faint beeping. The general was yelling something…

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The next few seconds passed sluggishly. A bright, white light seemed to erupt from the destroyed windows. A soft beeping that had not been heard over the commotion was now a long continuous drone. The special tasks soldiers half turned to look at their commanding general. And then, an explosion. The remains of the building were incinerated. Everyone still inside was instantly killed. The shock wave sped forward like a tsunami and hit the general and all the other soldiers who were milling around. All that was left of the guard house was a black piece of charred concrete. In a couple minutes, the shock wave had passed and the survivors staggered up.

"Anyone alive?" The general called out.

Several more people sat up.

"Gods… who in their right minds would do this?"

"I don't know…" the general stared at the destruction.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(Moments before the first and second blast)

Galian had asked several people about the guard within the office. He needed to know more about him before acting.

"He is an evil man…" an old lady said. "He arrested my son for possessing a sword."

Galian looked confused.

"But I thought it was allowed?"

"Times change, child…"

"Do you know where he is?"

"They probably took him into the dungeons…"

"Okay, we'll look for him then."

"But what are you intending to do…?"

"You won't tell anyone will you?"

"No…"

"Some of our friends were falsely accused of crimes. It's all Lord Envy's work. We're going to go find them."

"Good luck, boy!" The old lady shooed him on.

Galian stepped outside. He looked casually to the right. By a side gate, he saw the signal and flashed his back. They were ready. He paused slightly to adjust the timer on his C-4 to five seconds. He wanted each blast to be good. Acquiring the materials for these bombs had been extremely difficult. He clicked the small button and let it fly. It hit the guard squarely in the head. Galian chuckled as the guard bent to examine the strange object. The building exploded, a relatively minor explosion to the one coming, but a big one nonetheless. He paused again, waiting for the heat to dissipate a bit. Then he rushed in to the destroyed guardhouse. He quickly tied several more C-4's to the ceiling. A bit of his shirt tore on a piece of rubble but he ignored it and left a small note on the ground. He left just as the first soldiers arrived. He watched as they panicked and ran around frantically trying to find evidence of him. One of them held up a small piece of cloth.

"Uh oh…" he muttered.

Luckily, his three minute timer had just ran out. A second explosion ripped through the area, more deadly than the first. Galian crouched slightly as giant winds rushed past his hiding area. Bits of rubble shot out like cannonballs, killing several soldiers on the ground. The buildings shook as the brunt of the blast hit them. Then, silence. A cry from someone off in the distance, witnessing the explosion from afar. Then, complete chaos. Soldiers started shouting, the general was ordering people around, people were gathering and yelling for explanations.

'Time to go…' Galian thought.

"Hey!" Some guy shouted. "That guy looks suspicious!"

Everyone turned to stare at Galian, who had just stood up. A cricket chirruped in the background.

"Um… Hi, everybody… I uh… have an aunt who is… in the… uh… hospital… and uh… GOTTA GO!" He took off running.

In about three seconds, every available soldier was chasing after Galian. It was noisy as he dashed through the streets and the citizens made way for the swarm of officials.

"Get him!"

"Damn… they better get going!" Galian muttered and continued to run.

He turned slightly to stick his tongue out at the general. His face became a lovely shade of red.

"STOP HIM!" The general roared. "ANYONE WHO CAPTURES HIM GETS A REBIRTHING!"

Instantly, everyone that had been in the Holy city long enough turned and followed chase. This just about tripled the number of people chasing Galian.

"OH SHIT!" He shouted as he pumped his legs, urging them to go faster.

In about half a second, things had dropped from bad to worse.

'Me and my freakin' big mouth!' He thought feverishly as he started to pant slightly.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(Flashback!) (Yes, this scene change thing is getting confusing… bear with me)

"Galian, you're a genius."

"What…?" Galian looked up to see everyone grinning at him. "Oh… no…"

Five, brutally painful minutess later…

"NNOOO! I don't wanna be a decoy!" Galian writhed around, trying to free himself from the bonds.

"Okay. So, what should we do then?"

"Once we have a diversion, we can sneak into the House without much trouble." Sephiroth said, completely ignoring Galian.

"We need a good distraction, and something even an idiot could operate." Gigas said.

"I'M NOT AN IDIOT!"

"How about a bomb?" Takari said. "Simple, loud distraction. Hell, it may even cause some people to be killed."

"Good idea. But where are we going to get the supplies for the bombs."

"Let's ask Galian." Takari turned.

"I REFUSE TO TELL YOU ANYTHING!"

Takari squatted down in front of him.

"Really now? Not even if I get you a date with that princess?"

"Really!" Galian sat up.

"Sure."

Ironically, Galian didn't notice Takari's crossed fingers at his side. He told them every item to its exact proportion. In a short amount of time, they had gone to the shops selling different substances they needed. Once they finished the twenty C4 packages, Takari turned to Galian.

"Good job, oh genius pyromaniac."

"Sure, so when do I get that date?"

"What date?"

"You promised me that you would set a date up between me and that Wutain girl!"

"Did I now?"

"Um… Yeah!"

Takari held up a hand and crossed two fingers.

"WHAT! Takari! You cheap bastard! GAH! When I get out of this, I'm gonna put arsenic in everything you eat!"

"Now, now… calm down." Takari said. "You get the honor of setting off the bombs."

"HELL NO! I REFUSE TO DO ANYTHING ELSE FOR YOU!"

Sephiroth then strode over.

"Well, if that's the case, I say we strap the bombs onto him and leave him at that guard station."

"Wait! Wait!"

"Oh, yes." Gigas said. "That would take care of two problems…"

"OKAY! I be your freakin' decoy!" Galian said with some reluctance.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(Present Time)

And now, he was being chased by, quite literally, half of the people in the Holy City. He was starting to regret ever having spoken.

'Next time, I'll keep my comments to myself!'

Suddenly, an arm shot out of an alleyway and grabbed him.

"GAH! Let me go!"

"Quiet you!" A voice hissed in his ear.

He turned to see a lady. He recognized her as the Wutain girl's mother.

"Oh, hello."

"In here!" She opened a hidden door and the two rushed in.

She closed the door just as several people turned the corner.

"Keep going! He must be around here!" Galian heard them yell.

He sighed and sank down onto the floor of the hidden room, panting.

"Here." She said, handing him a flask of water.

"Thanks…" he muttered, gulping graciously at the cool liquid.

"You were really brave out there." She said, smiling at me.

"I was running for my life… of course it seemed brave." He said sheepishly.

"Ha…" she laughed quietly. "So modest. I wonder how they're doing…"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Chaos dashed through the deserted corridors with Sephiroth, Gigas, and Takari close on his tail.

"Chaos! Slow down!" Takari shouted as they continued to race through the corridors.

Chaos paid no heed as he rushed up to a familiar door. He kicked the door open. Envy was standing there, nonchalantly staring at them.

"Where are they, ENVY!" Chaos shouted.

He smiled coldly, and raised a hand. Chaos dodged out of the way just as a ball of dark energy blasted the doorway.

"Dammit!" Gigas cursed and leaped out of the way of the falling rubble.

Envy pointed his hand at Chaos again and fired off another spell.

"He's toying with us!" Takari shouted.

Hearing this, Chaos's anger grew.

"Damn you, Envy! Where are they!"

He laughed as he continued to fire off spells. Dust filled the room, causing it to become hazy. His laughter was cut short as he felt all connection lost from his arm. He paused, confused. He tried to move his fingers. Nothing happened. As the dust cleared, he glanced at his right arm. All he saw was a bloody stump. A cry erupted from his throat as he saw his arm twitching on the ground in a pool of its own blood. Chaos dragged him up, with his free hand. The other was clutched on his saber, which he had used just moments ago.

"WHERE ARE THEY!" He screamed in Envy's face.

"Go fuck yourself!" Envy cursed. "I'll never tell a demon like you!"

"Allow me." Gigas said.

He grabbed Envy by the throat.

"Where are they?" He asked kindly, fist tightening around his throat.

"Go to hell, you bastard!" Envy shouted, spittle flying from his mouth.

"That's not nice…" Gigas wiped the spit away.

Envy's left hand had healed his severed arm. His newly healed right arm raised to strike at Gigas. Another snip sounded the air. This time, Takari held his katana skillfully as the newly healed arm was once again cut off. Takari whisked to the other side and did the same with his left arm. Envy screamed in pain.

"That is quite the drawback, huh?" Chaos sneered. "Having only the ability to use your right hand to conjure spells… Now. I shall ask you again. Where. Are. They?"

"Allow me to repeat myself!" Envy shouted, eyes wide with pain and fury. "GO. FUCK. YOURSELF!"

Chaos smiled slightly.

"Is that so?" He snapped his fingers.

Gigas, who was still clutching Envy by the throat, let off a charge of electricity. A high voltage shock for two seconds. Not enough to knock him unconscious, but enough to set ever one of Envy's nerves on fire. He screamed in pain. Gigas clutched harder, cutting off all noise from Envy.

"Where are they?"

"I don't know!"

Another sizzle, another scream.

"Where are they?"

"GUARDS!"

Sizzle. Scream.

"They're busy chasing Galian. Where are Sera, Vincent, Cloud, and Tifa?"

Envy stayed silent. Gigas was about to shock Envy again when Chaos stopped him.

"What?" Gigas asked.

"I had a feeling something like this would happen." He brought out a syringe. "I'm sure you're familiar with sulfur monoxide?"

"W-what!" Envy shouted, looking at the black liquid fearfully.

"You wouldn't want this injected into you, now would you?"

"I… ah…"

"Ah, well." Chaos drew closer with the syringe.

"Wait!"

Chaos continued to walk closer.

"Yes?"

"They're in the dungeons!"

"Good." Chaos injected contents of the syringe into Envy's arm.

They tied him up and dragged him away, his screams echoing throughout the House of Legends as the chemicals ate away at his blood.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

After going down several flights of steps, they came across a long stretch of cells. They continued down them before finding Cloud and Tifa.

"You two okay?" Sephiroth asked as he slashed through the bars.

"Yes, how did you get here?" Tifa asked.

Gigas held up the twitching form of Envy.

"Pitiful…" Cloud spat.

"Where are Vincent and Sera?" Chaos kicked Envy.

He jerked his head slightly, unable to point. Chaos walked to the next cell over. He brought out his saber and shattered the bars. Sera looked up as did Vincent.

"Chaos!" She ran over to hug him.

"What took you so long?" Vincent asked.

"We had minor setbacks… some people are quite adamant with their information…"

"Ah."

"Well." Chaos said, clapping his hands together. "All that's left is to turn this bastard in."

"Hey!"

Chaos paused.

"Is someone there?" The voice called out again.

"Who is it?" Chaos called back.

"Over here!" An arm waved out of a cell.

Chaos walked over. In the cell, was a man. He had short, brown hair and a slightly unshaven beard. He was wearing normal clothes suggesting he had been detained outside of the House of Legends. His movements were, no matter how tired, controlled, a sure sign of a powerful fighter.

"How did you come to be in here?" Chaos asked as the party drew closer.

"That bastard took me here just because I was bringing a sword to one of the Generals!" He pointed at Envy.

"Is that so?" Chaos broke open the cell bars. "What is your name?"

The man walked out.

"I am Jacob. Please, let me join your team as thanks. Come with me. It'll only be a while. I'll just retrieve the sword Envy took."

They returned upstairs to the main hall. A quick detour led them to a side chamber where guards kept confiscated weapons. There weren't many, but one stood out from the rest. A bright silver sheath lay on a shelf, it's hilt encrusted with gems. The guard was intricately woven from metal in a beautiful design. The handle fit in his hand perfectly as he drew it to check on its condition. The metal blade glinted in the light.

"I had worked so long on this…" he muttered. "It's practically unbreakable."

They continued into the hear of the House of Legends. Once again, they approached the place where Sephiroth had been detained. Jacob, Tifa, and Cloud stayed a ways back as the rest surrounded Envy in case he tried something. Chaos approached the door. There was no name plate on the door, just a blank piece of metal. The door was also made of a different material than the others. It seemed to shimmer and faze in and out of focus. Chaos raised a tentative hand to knock. It was solid enough and gave off a rich sound. There was a faint noise from within and, after a while, the door was opened.

"Yes?" The lady said.

No words could describe the beauty of this lady. Her platinum silver hair glowed in the dim light as it cascaded down past her shoulders like water. Her eyes were sinner's eyes, rapidly shifting, unlike Sera. It would appear that she could see what was happening throughout the whole Planet and was affected by it. She wore silver robes and held a staff that was engraved with ancient runes long forgotten. She stared at the group in mild curiosity.

"Yes?" She repeated, and Sera could hear a hint of fatigue in her voice.

"This man is conspiring to kill you." Chaos said simply.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, Milady." Chaos bowed.

"And what do you have to say in your defense, sir?" She looked coldly at him.

Time seemed to stop as he began to speak.

"I say…"

Sera noticed he had drawn something on the ground with a hand that hadn't been there a while ago! Nobody noticed it or the symbol he had drawn.

"YOU CAN BURN IN HELL!" He shouted, slapping his hand down on the symbol.

Time moved sluggishly. The Creator's eyes widened in shock. She couldn't do anything about the spell, being caught off guard. Sera yelled as three long steel spears shot out of the ground.

"Look out!" She shouted, leaping into the path of the spears.

Vincent watched as the steel entered her body. There was a spray of blood as she fell to the ground, the spears, still stuck firmly in her. She coughed and a splatter of blood appeared on the stone floor. Everyone shouted in anger and brought their weapons out. Chaos and Takari slashed from each side, causing a V shaped cut. Sephiroth's masamune slashed through Envy's midriff. Gigas let off a blast of lightning. The room was filled with the smell of burning flesh. And last, Vincent cocked his Death Penalty and shot Envy in the head. Envy was still grinning a crooked smile as his head jerked back in a spray of blood.

"Oh, Lucifer…" he said in a sing-song voice. "I'm back…"

A sudden flame engulfed Envy and he vanished without a trace. Vincent rushed to Sera. He lifted her gently into his lap.

"Sera…" he whispered.

"Sorry… Vincent…" she muttered and went limp.

Chaos gave a strangled cry and threw his saber at the wall, where it imbedded itself to the hilt. Takari, Gigas, and Sephiroth bowed their heads respectively. Vincent sat there, tears flowing unashamedly down his face. Tifa had both hands covering her mouth and Cloud stood there, staring in shock. The Creator approached him.

"She can still be saved…" she said, placing a hand on Vincent's shoulder.

Everyone was instantly alert.

"How." He said.

It was not a question, but a demand.

"I can keep her from going to Hell for twenty-four hours. You have exactly that much time. You must get the white materia to heal her. It is your only hope."

Vincent stood up after setting her gently on the ground.

"How do I get back to the Planet?"

"I'm coming." Chaos said, face grim.

The Creator chanted several words. Vincent and Chaos vanished. She then knelt down next to the fallen Fate. She made the wounds heal and the spears vanish, but the girl stayed still. The Creator sat down, a small sphere enveloping Sera.

"It is all up to you now…" she said sadly.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: AHH! (Dodges tomatoes, rotten food, and chairs) I didn't mean it!

Readers: BOO!

Me: AH! (Dodges piano) I DEMAND TO KNOW WHO THREW THAT!

Readers: KILL HIM!

Me: NOO! But seriously! Things will get better! Soon! WAIT!

Readers: FINE!

Me: Once again, some reviews would be appreciated. Also, can you guess what's gonna happen in the next couple chapters? Five to ten reviews and I'll start working on the next chapter RIGHT NOW!


	11. Race

Me: Come on! What's the matter with you people! I wanted lots of reviews! All I got was two… GAH! Is it because you hate me…? Bleh… Thank you to **The Tiramisu of Impending Doom** and **Emri**! You two are the most faithful people to this story! Now I want at **LEAST** eight reviews for this chapter! I WILL BE VERY UPSET IF YOU DON'T! I MIGHT EVEN STOP THIS STORY AND GO ONTO SOMETHING ELSE!

Note: This chapter is fast paced, but that doesn't mean I neglected details!

Note 2: Ah yes! I just realized! To CloudLov3r! You can't have hated my story that badly or you would've stopped after the first chapter! Reading seven chapters, and a prologue, and then reviewing means you've got to have liked some part of it…(yay to logic…)

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 9 – Race

Sera felt a burning flash of pain as the spears entered her body. Her own blood appeared before her eyes as she collapsed onto the cold stone floor. She watched as the others retaliated and Envy disappeared. Vincent's concerned face appeared before her.

"Sera…" he whispered, his eyes filled with a new emotion she had never seem him express.

Fear. Though she had never seen him scared, it wasn't a confused fear. It was a hopeless fear, the one that is felt when awaiting the unavoidable.

"Sorry… Vincent…" she whispered and closed her eyes.

The next thing she knew, the pain was gone. She was sitting in a room. The walls were bare and the floor was sectioned into twenty-four tiles. There was neither entrance nor exit to the lonely chamber.

'Is this my punishment? Is this where I'm doomed to live until the end of time?'

_'Sera…'_

"Who's there?"

_'This is the Creator speaking. I thank you for your deed, and I will try to help bring you back, but you will have to cooperate with me.'_

"What do I do?"

_'Stay on this side of the room. As the time passes, the tiles will slowly fall. Vincent and Chaos have twenty-four hours to retrieve the white materia and return here to revive you. I can only keep you here for twenty-four hours. In the mean time, don't fall. For if you do, you will fall into Hell before your time is up.'_

"O-okay…" she said and sat down.

Then she clasped her hands together and prayed.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Will she be alright?" Jacob asked as he stared at the lifeless form of Sera.

Her face was pale in the dim lighting. Her shirt, previously riddled with holes, was repaired and the wounds healed.

"Only time will tell…" the Creator said, bowing her head.

"Why didn't we get to go?" Gigas asked.

"Those two had no time to think… they volunteered and left immediately. We don't have any time to waste."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Once again, Vincent felt the familiar separating sensation. He was taken from the Holy city and placed, quite forcefully, back into his body. He gasped as his lungs filled with new air. The chamber he had been in several days ago. It beeped and opened upon sensing that its occupant was indeed alive. Vincent walked out, stumbling slightly because his legs hadn't moved in so long. He blinked his eyes and stretched slightly.

"Vincent!" Reeve called out.

He snapped to attention at the tone in Reeve's voice. He looked to see Reeve and the Turks sitting there, looking very tired and slightly wounded.

"What has happened here?"

"I don't know, Vincent. About a day after you guys left, demons started pouring out of North Crater! It's extremely dangerous there! Icicle Inn has already been wiped out!"

"What!"

"Look!"

Reeve pulled up an aerial picture of Icicle Inn. Buildings were alit with dancing flames and grotesque figures roamed the streets. Most prominent were the dead that lined the streets. Some lay gutted, expressions of horror upon their faces. Others lay half-eaten, scavengers picking at the flesh. Reeve turned away from the screen in disgust.

"And they're not your typical monsters either! Nobody has ever seen them before! It's as if Hell's creatures have come to take vengeance on us."

"Envy…" Vincent growled.

"What?"

"Never mind. I need to get to the City of the Ancients as soon as I can."

"What for?"

"Sera's life depends on it. I need to get back within twenty-four hours."

"But, Vincent! That's impossible!" Reeve said. "It takes at least two days to get there, even by the Highwind! You'd need a total of four days to get there and back. Besides, the demons destroyed our airport, so we have no ships!"

"Damn!" Vincent rushed to the door.

"Wait!" Reeve shouted.

But it was too late; Vincent flung open the steel laboratory door. He had taken one step outside when a horned beast leapt at him. He pinned him to the ground and roared in his face. Noxious fumes leaked from its mouth and its eyes were pitch black. Its skin, or rather, its fur, was hot to the touch and felt as if a truck had landed on him. It raised a clawed hand to tear Vincent's head off.

"I don't have time for this!" Vincent roared, transforming into Chaos.

He blocked the attack and leapt back. He slashed out at the beast and a gash appeared on its chest. Black blood oozed out as it roared in agony. Chaos muttered a spell and a skull appeared under the demon. Flaming skulls flew out of the skull's mouth and slammed into the beast. To Chaos's horror, it healed the beast. It leapt at Chaos and its powerful arms grasped his wings, trying to tear them off. There was a loud gunshot as Reno fired at it. The gun reminded of Sera. This prompted the issue of time, and they were running out of it. Out of rage and desperation, Chaos tore the beast in two and transformed back into Vincent.

'_I can't fly in here.'_ Chaos explained.

"You guys take care of them!" Vincent shouted as he ran from the lab.

He ran down the stairs, demons leaping out every once and a while. Vincent shot every one and continued on his way.

'_Faster, Vincent!'_

Down several more flights of stairs, through more demons.

"We're outside!" Vincent gasped.

'_Good.'_

Chaos reemerged and they flew off into the blue sky. He hovered slightly above the enormous city, and flew towards the edge of the city. Several winged demons flew up to snatch at Chaos, but he just swatted them away.

'**We're going too slow!'** Vincent said from within his mind.

_'I can't do anything about it! I'm going as fast as I can!'_

(A/N: Think about it… you can only flap so fast…)

'**Use Haste!'**

'_Alright.'_ Chaos thought and brought out one of Vincent's materia orbs. "Haste!"

He moved faster as the spell took effect. Chaos exited Midgar and soared north. He hadn't even reached the shoreline when there was a roar. Something large swooped at him. Chaos was buffeted aside by the slipstream. He turned to gaze upon a black dragon-like creature. It had two pairs of wings and two heads. It was similar to the one faced in the North Crater, except it flew, and that alone made it ten times more dangerous. One head breathed flames. Chaos dodged it, but even from that distance, the flames were burning hot.

'**It is as if the flames of hell reside in that demon…'** Vincent said.

The other head belched out a mouthful of a black gas. It condensed into a cloud around Chaos.

_'This smells a lot like…'_

'**GUNPOWDER!'** Vincent shouted as the other head spewed for flames.

Chaos flew to the side as the flame hit the cloud. The entire mass exploded into fire. Chaos cursed profusely as the edge of the explosion and his legs were burnt badly.

'**We're running out of time! It's already been two hours since we left the city! We haven't even left the continent yet!'**

(A/N: One hour fighting the demon and getting out of the demon-infested building. One hour to get out of the city. Chaos goes at about sixty miles per hour, and the city is fairly large. Keep in mind that the city has been expanded due to Reeve's ascending to power. Don't trust the game map! According to that, a chocobo is a large as Kalm!)

'_I know!'_ Chaos shouted.

The monster lunged, jaws open. Chaos barely had time to slash at the teeth in order to avoid being torn in half. It spat out another self-made bomb. Chaos rolled out of the way.

'**We are wasting time!'**

'_I'm aware of that! If I turn my back, we're dead!'_

Another roar sounded. Chaos looked to the side to see Ultima WEAPON soaring for the aerial battle.

"Shit! Not now!" Chaos shouted.

He didn't have time to deal with that, too! It opened its jaws and let off a blast of energy. Chaos yelled and dived to the right, but the beam missed him altogether. It hit the dragon squarely in the chest. It shrieked in pain. Another voice entered Chaos's mind.

'_**Hurry!'**_

It was the Creator. Chaos nodded to the WEAPON, recast Haste on himself, and continued north. Behind him, he could hear the sounds of the two beasts crashing together. He flew faster.

"Sera…" he muttered.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Five hours had passed already. With each hour that passed one of the floor's tiles crumbled away. Sera was becoming increasingly worried. One fourth of their time was just about up. If they weren't there yet…

"Hello, Sera."

She whirled around to face the speaker. It was herself.

"You!"

"Ah! So you remember! Shame… you nearly killed yourself there… darn, ne?" Though being similar to Sera in appearance, there were noticeable differences.

Her eyes were black and glinted with malice. She was smiling in a sick way, as if she had just seem death and enjoyed it. Her clothing was white with bloodstains all over it. She noticed Sera's staring.

"It's the blood of all you've killed, Sera." She explained.

"What do you want!"

"Dear, dear Sera… don't you know who I am?"

"No…"

"My, my… I thought I told you! I am you! I can come and go as I wish!"

"What do you want?" Sera repeated in a deadly whisper.

"Nothing much. Just to tell you how your boyfriend is…"

"Vincent?"

"Yes, him… they're about half way there… but they won't make it…"

"Yes he will! You were already wrong once!"

"Yeah, and what are the chances of me being wrong again?"

"…"

"Well, you know the answer to that yourself." She walked over to the edge of the tiles.

"W…What are you doing!" Sera yelled.

"Nothing. This won't effect you in the slightest."

"Then why…"

"To prepare a welcoming party for you of course."

"What…?"

"See you in hell, Sera." She blew her a mock kiss and fell down into the darkness.

"Wait!" Sera rushed over to the edge and looked down.

She watched as the still grinning figure fell. Then she was gone. Sera felt a movement under her and realized she was still on the tile. It began to crumble. She ran across the tile just as it fell away. She let out a cry as her arms strained to hold her weight. She felt the icy coldness below and shivered. Gradually, she pulled herself up. Then she stayed at the other side of the room, refusing to even near the edge.

'Vincent… hurry…'

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Chaos soared over the blue waters, a large serpentine demon swimming fast on his tail.

"Dammit! What's with all these freaks!" Chaos said to no one in particular.

As if in response, three more water demons joined the first in pursuit of the flying demon.

"**We're almost at the North Continent!"** Vincent said.

They soared over land, but this did not stop the beasts. They plowed on, straight into the sand. Slithering over the sand, the creatures were only slowed down a bit before regaining their original speed.

"Dammit!" Chaos shouted as he pumped his exhausted wings. "I can't… go any longer…"

He transformed into Vincent as he landed. Vincent landed, regained his balance, and started a mad dash for the forest and Bone Village. One of the demons caught up with him and lunged, one of its teeth sinking into Vincent's arm.

"Fuck!" He shouted clutching the bleeding limb.

It grabbed his cape and tossed him into the air, coming up to snap him in two. Vincent watched as a bone collided with the side of the monster's neck. It closed its mouth, making a gagging noise. Then it fell to the ground, black blood spilling out from its mouth. Vincent landed on his left leg. He cursed again as he felt it snap underneath him. He pulled out a Full-Cure materia and healed himself. Above him, two gigantic skeletons were battling with the remaining three serpents. They had apparently burst out of the ground from Bone Village. One worker was even huddled there, shocked that his home was moving. Without a second thought, Vincent ran off north towards Bone Village. About an hour later, he got through the trees and other small demons into the village. Giant holes were in the ground where the creatures had burst out on the Creator's orders. He continued to run and climbed up a ladder that was somehow still intact. He climbed up another ladder and headed into the Sleeping Forest.

"What the hell…?" Vincent gasped.

The Sleeping Forest was no longer asleep. Every creature had been awoken to battle against the demons that had intruded upon the forest. The once peaceful forest was now as scene of violence and destruction. Bodies of both sides lay scattered everywhere on the ground. Blood spattered the earth making it a dark brown. Trees were alight with dancing flames. Red, orange, and yellow leapt from branch to branch. Smoke filled the once crisp and clean air.

'_Vincent! Hurry!'_ Chaos shouted.

"Got it!" Vincent started running again.

He ran through the forest. Up ahead, he could see the small figure of the City of the Ancients. He shot a charging demon as he ran. He burst out onto the wash in which the City of the Ancients was built. He ran up towards the city, the shell housing becoming more visible as he ran. He gasped for air as he tired.

'_Want me to take over?'_

'**Are you rested?'**

'_Not yet…'_

'**Ask me when you are…'**

The city seemed so far away as he ran, but after about eleven hours after leaving the Holy city, Vincent Valentine reached the City of the Ancients.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Eleven tiles had crumbled to nothing. Sera sat there, worry increasing as she heard no news about Vincent. The demon Sera's words rang loud and clear through her mind.

"…but they won't make it…"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Two more hours had passed and Vincent was still within the City of the Ancients. Now, the question is, why is he taking so long? Is he sleeping? Did he decide to have a cup of tea? Did he trip on a rock and was unconscious for two hours? Rather, he was in quite a nasty situation. On one hand, he could give up and go back, thus letting Sera die. On the other, he could risk his life to retrieve the white materia. Of course, he chose the latter…

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(An hour ago)

'_HOLYSHITWHATTHEFUCKISTHAT!'_ Chaos shouted from within Vincent's mind.

'**Shut up… I'm trying to think…'**

It had gone from bad to worse. Here they were, peacefully trying to retrieve a shiny white orb from the waters, when some giant puff-like octopus decides to take a swim in it. It, the demon of course, had decided that it rather enjoyed the warm waters and snapped at everything it tried to eat. It was quite protective of its home and, therefore, all intruding things were eaten. Unluckily for Vincent, the white materia was an 'intruding object.' Or maybe it just ate it to spite him, he would never know.

'I'm gonna strangle Envy when I get to hell…' Vincent thought bitterly.

He now resided, as the white materia did, within the evil octopus's stomach. In truth, it did not smell too pleasant.

'_YOU IDIOT! Now what do we do!'_

'**Calm down. We can now retrieve the materia.'**

'_Uh, hello! If you haven't noticed, WE ARE SLOWLY BEING DISSOLVED!'_

'**Shut UP! I'm aware of that! Look, I can see it now.'**

Vincent swam through the gunk that was the beast's digestive juices. All in all, it was not very pleasant, but Sera's life was at stake. He emerged in a fairly small chamber. It was dry and the digestive juices only covered the ground. The small materia orb was on a ledge. He grabbed the orb and stuffed it into his pocket.

'**Time?'**

'_Twelve and a half hours have passed! We could still make it back!'_

'**Let's go…'**

'_HOW! If you haven't noticed, WE ARE TRAPPED!'_

'**Let's break our way out…'**

Vincent hoisted his rifle and fired at the wall. The shell sank into the fleshy inside of the beast's stomach. Outside, a faint screeching could be heard. Vincent was about to fire again when small squelching noises could be heard. He turned to see several fleshy creatures crawling towards them.

'_Probably an inner defense system… they shouldn't be too hard…'_

This is where he was horribly wrong. The creature snarled and leapt forward, opening its mouth and revealing rows of razor sharp teeth. Vincent stepped aside and the creature fell harmlessly away. The others joined in and Vincent was forced to dodge them in fear of being eaten. Vincent fired at one of them. The bullet hit the creature and the thing exploded.

'**Ah! What the hell!'**

'_Pay attention!'_

He dodged and fired at another one. It exploded. More creatures were flooding into the room now. Vincent was forced to use his claw. One of them stuck to it, causing a scorch mark to appear as it exploded. There were almost twice as many creatures as when they first arrived now.

'_I'm taking over. Too much time is passing.'_

Chaos transformed and started slashing at the creatures. This turned out to be more effective seeing as they had limited room to maneuver, and Chaos could fly, so they wouldn't be standing in gunk that was slowly dissolving them. One of them leapt up and sank its teeth in his leg. Chaos cursed and slashed at it. As it died, it burned Chaos's leg. By this time, over forty-five minutes had passed since they first entered the creature.

'_Sorry, Vincent… this is gonna hurt…'_

'**What…?'**

Chaos held his hands in the air. He took several deep breaths and then yelled.

"CHAOS FLARE!"

A sphere of orange began to expand from Chaos. A creature leapt at it, only to disintegrate with a small scream. The orb slowly filled the chamber. All the small creatures squealed and crumbled to dust. Outside, the demon paused. It could feel something happening. Its stomach felt hot. Inside, the sphere had filled the chamber. Then it stopped. Chaos floated there, breathing calming breaths. Suddenly, the orb shrank and then exploded outwards. The demon let out a shriek as it felt its body being torn to pieces and it being thrown outward. The last thing it saw was a bright fiery orange. The spell died away. The water that had once flowed smoothly in the small pool was now gone, evaporated by the intense heat. Bits and pieces of the demon stuck splattered against the walls of the chamber. Chaos breathed several more times and opened his eyes.

'_Let's go.'_

He started to fly out of the City of the Ancients. He didn't even bother do go out through the wash. He just soared straight into the air and flew right in the direction of Midgar. Almost as if they were trying to stop him, every creature imaginable had formed a barricade in the air. They roared and shrieked as he approached. He brought out his sword.

"COME ON!" He screamed, lunging into the mass.

Bodies rained from the sky as he slashed the wings off beasts and gored others. The more he killed, the more determined they seemed to stop him.

'**Chaos! We still have to get back to the Holy city!'** Vincent shouted.

'_I KNOW!' Chaos yelled back. 'There's nothing I can do!'_

A roar sounded as a bleeding Ultima WEAPON soared towards them. It flew on, uncaring that it was bleeding profusely and had a chunk missing from its leg. It gave another roar and joined the fray. The two skeletons on the ground were also joining the fight. They threw chunks of earth and trees with deadly accuracy, often piercing a good two three demons at once. A huge waterspout signified Emerald WEAPON's entrance. It had dominated in its own habitat by destroying all the demons within the sea, and now it came to help its brethren in an aerial battle. Though it could not attack directly, its laser blasts and control over the water proved enough to send demons plummeting into the waters below. Finally, on land, Ruby WEAPON burst out of the ground to help the two skeletons. Its whip like claws scattering the troops as they swung through the air. Chaos took this opportunity to soar past the barricade and straight south. Chaos completely ignored the burning pain in his wings as he flew for the sake of Sera. Nine straight hours of flying and Chaos collapsed back into Vincent who instantly took off running into the Shinra building. In about forty minutes, Vincent burst back into the lab, gasping for air.

"Vincent! You… you made it! Oh my… I can't believe it!" Reeve said helping him to his feet.

"No… time… go… now…" he panted, stumbling into the chamber.

Another painful separation and reformation. They were standing outside of the pearly gates again. Saint Peter stopped them.

"Halt. Tell me your names and how you died… I also have to take your weapons. We don't allow those within the city unless you two are planning on joining the army…"

"Shut up!" Chaos shouted as he bowled past the old man.

The two ran as fast as they could for the House of Legends. All of a sudden, they were confronted with scores of troops.

"General Chaos! You shall now be detained for governmental assassination!" The general shouted. "Guards! Take them away!"

"No!" Chaos shouted, punching a guard. "We have to get to the House of Legends!"

He continued to fight his way through the crowd, ignoring all pain as they attempted to bring him down. Vincent fought, too, fighting alongside Chaos as they broke through the ranks. The guards pressed in, tackling the two to the ground.

"Sera!" Vincent shouted in a hoarse cry.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The very last tile. Sera sat there, praying.

'Please, Vincent… please make it…'

A loud cackle came from the darkness below.

"I told you!" She said in a sing-song voice. "Welcome… Sera… to Hell!"

The tile began to crumble away.

"Vincent…" she whispered.

The tile fell. Sera found herself plummeting into the darkness. The gave one short cry before darkness took over. She fell unconscious as she fell to the fiery pits of Hell.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"SERA!" Vincent shouted.

"Get the fuck off me!" Chaos roared as he threw guards aside, slashing at all that got near to him.

"DETAIN THEM!" The general screamed at the guards.

"STOP!" A loud voice commanded.

Instantly, all activities ceased. Everyone turned to look at the speaker. It was the Creator. She approached Vincent and Chaos.

"S…Sera… she…" Chaos stuttered.

The Creator shook her head sadly. Chaos dropped his saber, covered with the blood of guards and demons alike, and sank to his knees, still staring at the Creator. Vincent had let go of the Death Penalty with a loud thud. He stood there, unable to speak or move. She was gone. Sera was gone. They had failed.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: AHH! Don't hurt me! Did you like this chappy? Please Review if you read it! Even if you don't like it, tell me why! REMEMBER! EIGHT OR AROUND THAT NUMBER OF REVIEWS OR I WILL STOP THIS COMPLETELY!


	12. Aftermath

Me: Chapter 10! I finally decided, fuck this. I'm going to finish this story! Then again… there's still probably around ten chapters left or something… Bah… you better review to this one! Many thanks to **Emri**! You get cookies! Anyway, back to the story… This one kinda has some mean stuff in it… cruelty to Sera… poor her… kind of a bridging chapter… BUT! there is more action coming!

**LOTS OF SWEARING! THIS IS THE PART OF THE STORY WHERE YOU SHOULD ASK YOUR PARENTS, even if you're thirty, IF YOU CAN READ SUCH A THING!**

Note 2: O.o weird people who put my story in a community… ah well… as long as it's in a community… everyone needs a home… (sighs at the mushiness of the word home…) Okay, I'll stop being stupid…

Note 3: Just FYI… made a little change to chapter 5… took out one of the people they meet in the Holy city… he'll appear next chapter… but I needed him elsewhere… like in hell…

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 10 – Aftermath

Days or years could have passed without anybody's notice. Chaos just sat there, an empty, emotionless shell. He was still in shock. Who wouldn't be? They had been so close. Just a bit faster and Sera would be here to cheer everyone up. Now, it was as if a light had been dimmed. Nothing seemed as bright as before, nobody seemed as happy. Chaos blamed the guards for trying to detain them, but mostly, he blamed himself. If only he had flown a bit faster. Maybe the guards' blockade wouldn't have been so devastating. Or maybe if he had not spent so much time fighting. Maybe Sera's life could've been saved. There were too many factors. He now just sat there, numb to everything.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The guards had been dismissed. So had the judge. The Creator, angry for once, had yelled at all of them for believing Envy without confirmation to his rumors and lies. Nobody had dares to speak against her. Raw rage and power radiated from her as she had fired each and every one of them. The all left, shamefaced and jobless. She now walked over to a phone reserved for special situations. She picked it up. It rang for awhile. Nobody answered. A machine picked up.

"Hey, you've reached Lucifer here… not at my desk… boring job it is… but leave a message and I might call back."

The Creator stared at the phone and then spoke.

"Lucifer, you know who this is. I need a favor. I need you to return one of your recent admits. She's innocent and belongs here. Call and I shall give you more details." She said in a business-like tone.

She hung up and walked over to her bed. She needed to rest after the chaos she'd had to sort out.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"…Call and I shall give you more details."

The machine stopped recording as the message finished. A hand reached out and disconnected the phone. He chuckled slightly at the man who was bound by restraining spells. The prisoner stared at the man with bitter loathing. He tried to struggle loose but couldn't break the spells. The man turned.

"That's a favor we can't grant… now can we?" Envy chuckled and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Hey…" Galian poked Vincent in the back of the head. "You okay?"

"Go away, demon."

"Hey! I'm not a demon anymore!"

"Just… go away…"

"You still thinking about her?"

"…"

"Well?"

"…"

"Hmph… if you're gonna be that way, I won't tell you what the Creator told me…"

"She called Lucifer to ask for Sera back. Why don't you go talk to Chaos." Vincent muttered.

"Grrr… fine…"

Galian walked off to find Chaos.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Finally, the noise stopped. Splinters of an empty dresser sprayed out, embedding themselves in the wall. Galian peeked inside at the destruction.

"Uh… bad time?"

A lamp was hurled at the door. Galian ducked as it just barely grazed his hair.

"AHH! No need to throw things at me!"

"What do you want?" Chaos asked sharply.

"I dunno… you okay?"

"No." came the curt reply

Galian sighed.

"The Creator's trying to get her back. Just so you know. All we can do is wait… but we're sure we can get her back."

Chaos looked up.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Thank you."

"No problem." Galian said and left the room.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(Hell)

Crowds amassed to see the spectacle. None of them could believe it, yet they were all enthralled in a sick and twisted way. Before them, stood the one they had hated for so long. The cause of their misfortunes and miseries. Fate Sera stood, hands bound in shackles. Behind her back, with Envy holding a chain attached to her cuffs.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Filth and Scum!" He announced. "How long have you waited for this moment!"

A loud cheer arose from the gathered demons and souls. They stared hungrily at the poor girl, who stared back in fright.

"Here, I give you, Fate SERA!" He shouted, shoving her forward.

He began to walk at a fast pace, dragging her along with him.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Sera – Sera

_Sera_ – Evil Sera

(Just in case it gets confusing…)

'Be brave…' she told herself. 'They can't hurt you.'

"Quite on the contrary, my dear…" _Sera_ said from her left.

"Quiet you sick bitch… Get out of my mind…" Sera hissed back in anger.

"Ooh… such harsh words from such an innocent mouth…" _Sera_ sniggered. "I thought I've already clarified that up… I AM you…"

Sera ignored her and kept walking.

"Hey Bitch!" A murderer shouted out. "Why dontcha let me cut you up a bit! Mebbe then I'll forget about your hand in me getting run over by a fuckin' TRAIN!" He threw a rock at her.

As if the rest of the gathered crowd was waiting for that signal, they all began throwing objects and insults at the girl.

"Give me my money back, you whore!" A fat man shouted.

Another man threw a bloodied skull with bits of flesh and an eye still attached.

"That's all that's left of my son you bitch! What kind of sick twisted mind made you do such a thing!" The man, coincidentally a brutal child molester, shouted.

Sera winced and closed her eyes, trying to shut out the hate.

"Bitch!"

"Whore!"

"Slut!"

"Fuckin' Skank!"

Shouts filled the cavern as more gruesome objects were thrown. An arm, along with a comment about a war in Wutai, was thrown and Sera flinched as the cold fingers touched her.

"Aww…" _Sera_ cooed. "Is wittle Sera scared? Does she want her Vinnie-poo?"

"Shut up…" Sera said firmly.

_Sera_ let out a shrieking laugh as she dodged a brick, allowing it to collide with the side of Sera's head. She cried out as blood began to trickle down her temple, but couldn't wipe it away since her hands were tied. It was through this torture that Sera was led to the massive building known as the Forsaken Palace.

"This is where you will be staying!" Envy said happily. "Enjoy! Maybe he'll kill you and free you from a few day's agony!"

He threw her inside, watching in sadistic pleasure as she crashed into a cabinet filled with glass objects. They shattered and showered her with sharp shards. She held back a cry as one of the pieces cut her cheek. Cackling, Envy left, locking the doors behind him. Sniffing slightly, Sera pushed herself up, wary of the shards of glass that still littered the floor.

"Ah… here he comes… the _prince_…" _Sera_ said with a hint of excitement in her voice. "I wonder what he'll do to you."

"Who's there!" A voice barked out.

Sera turned to see vivid orange hair and piercing blue eyes.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The Creator approached the hushed group.

"I don't know what's going on… he always answers my message and this request doesn't seem irrational. I think I'm going to take a visit there…"

"Why isn't he answering!" Chaos shouted.

"Hush, little one." The Creator said calmly. "I know you care for her deeply. I will be able to speak with Lucifer about this. I am curious as to why he has not yet answered… I fear something may be wrong."

"I see…" Chaos said glumly, apparently disgruntled at being called 'little one.'

"I should be back in a few hours." She said, vanishing in a swirl of white.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Lucifer? Are you there?" The Creator called from outside Devil's Gate, Lucifer's private dwelling.

Inside, Envy froze. He had not expected her to come personally… but this was all the better. His mind quickly formed a plan as he hid behind the door. Silently, he cast a spell over Lucifer, who was tied up in the chair, disguising him so that he looked like Envy, except his face was pockmarked with bleeding wounds. Then he changed his appearance into Lucifer's. He stood next to the desk,

"Lucifer? I'm coming in…" the Creator gasped as she saw the bleeding man in the chair. "Um… is this a bad time?"

She had always thought of Lucifer as a just man, but then again, Envy deserved every punishment he got…

"No…" Envy said.

He always loved this part of deception. The moment when they figure out who you are. The shock was always perfect.

"You came at the perfect time." Envy said as his features melted back to his original features.

She gasped slightly and prepared a spell. Envy was a few steps ahead of her. An invisible force knocked her staff away from her as bars of darkness caged her in. With a flick of his wrist, the cage was sent hurling into a corner. Envy laughed.

"Let's see the world now!" He shouted. "Who will stop this when it comes!"

The Creator's eyes widened in shock as Envy pulled a small rock out of his pocket. He focused his energies, causing a replica in space to form. He continued to feed it magical energies from the rock in his hand to the enlarging counterpart in space.

"NOW!" He roared in insane glee. "LET THE GAMES BEGIN!"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(Chaos's POV)

I sat at the edge of the roof, staring into the never-ending sky. It had been five hours and the Creator had still not returned. I sighed, wondering how long it took to get a soul out of hell. The moon was bleeding tonight. It was a bright red ball in the sky. It was probably crying for us. I leapt off the roof and back into my room. I headed into the bathroom to wash up before going to the broken splinters of what remained of my bed. I glanced out of the window in the bathroom.

'Odd… the moon's white again.' I thought glancing out the window next to the mirror.

A moment passed as I continued to stare at the moon. Then it clicked. I rushed back to my balcony and stared at the sky. That was no moon I had seen.

It was Meteor.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: There! If finished Chapter Ten! You better review! Or I'll be angry! And… uh… um… I don't know but all I know is that if I don't finish some of these stories soon, I have around ten other stories that need to be posted! Those will go to waste! SO REVIEW!

I WANT TO START NOSFERATU'S KEEPER! (cries) BUT I HAVE UNFINISHED STORIES AND IF I START IT, IT WILL BE THE ONLY THING I WILL FOCUS ON! SO PLEASE REVIEW AND I WILL GET ONTO FINISHING THIS STORY!


	13. Breaking Point

Me: Wow… I can't believe people are reading again! Thanks to all who reviewed! You get cookies!

Note: (obviously during junior year) Junior year = lack of updates… Sorry…

Note 2: (some time ago) I've decided, because of notes I'm making for Nosferatu's Keeper, that the Creator's name is Lyria. I will attempt to bring that name in as smoothly as possible.

Note 3: (11-11-07) Wow… college apps suck. If I finish this chapter, it'll be a miracle.

Note 4: (2-13-09) … am I ever gonna finish this chapter?

Note 5: (7-28-09) And it is done. I'm rather pleased with myself for the extent in which I ended up taking this chapter, especially at the end. (Though I'm rather displeased that it took almost two years for me to finish it…) But that aside, I hope you enjoy the chapter, cuz I certainly enjoyed writing it.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Clearly I am rushing to try to finish this story… I'd like to say that in all the time on FanFiction I'd actually finish a story… but the ideas are getting pretty slow so if any of you people who read this have some kinda idea as to what I should do within the next couple chapters write it in the review section :/

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters originally in the game. But I do own everything else so nyah!

**Final Fantasy – Exile**

Chapter 11 – Breaking Point

Envy chuckled slightly.

'No wonder she's the Creator. Always prepared, huh?'

………………………………………………………………………………………………

(Moments ago)

"You came at the perfect time." Envy said as his features melted back to his original features.

She gasped, her hands suddenly blurring and then coming forward to cast a spell. As Envy contained her, a small wisp disappeared into thin air. He had made no notice of it then, too caught up in the moment. Now, he realized what it was. He laughed again.

"Go ahead! Warn the world! As if a sign in the sky is not enough. Warn them all so they might try and fail. Warn them… so we can play more games together!"

The Creator kept her face carefully blank. He had gotten most of it correct, and she wasn't about to reveal the rest of it. With another laugh, Envy walked off back outside to survey the chaotic formation of Hell's troops.

"I'll even help you! Let's have the most fun we can have!" With a gesture another, another wisp disappeared, heading towards its destination.

He walked closer to her, bending closer to her face.

"But no worries. You won't exist to witness the fun." He smirked.

Without warning, he plunged his hand into her stomach. She gasped in pain and surprise. A clear silvery liquid began to trickle out slowly, oozing over her pale skin. Lucifer growled slightly as Envy licked his fingers.

"So… even a God can bleed… It's sweet…" he turned and left the room.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

The Holy City was in a panic. People were at the gates of the House of Legends, screaming for explanations of the current situation.

"Dammit! Where is she?!"

Vincent ran up to Chaos.

"No sign. It appears she has not returned."

A sudden flash of flames and a note fluttered to the ground. Vincent snatched it out of the air. He frowned slightly.

"What is it?" Chaos asked, walking up to him.

"Envy." He threw the paper at Chaos. "Assemble the others. We need to get to Hell."

With that, Vincent stormed out of the room. Chaos reread the letter.

To all who still have HOPE:

First, I suggest you get rid of that notion. For there is little HOPE left in this world. And if you are foolish enough to fight FATE, well, first of all FATE is being rather docile – must be all that excitement in my bed. BUT if any of you HOPEless people decide that FATE may yet again join your ranks, I, of all people cordially invite you to join this game. The task is simple. Pass all tests and HOPEfully, you may yet change your FATE. Though there is little HOPE in that. And for those who wish to run, there is no HOPE for you either way.

I sincerely HOPE you join.

Lord Envy

Chaos sighed, glancing up again at Meteor.

'Envy,' he thought to himself. 'You have no idea what you're getting yourself into…'

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Who's there?" The man walked down the stairs, anger filling his eyes.

"Ah, Prince." _Sera_ cooed, walking up to him. "Envy sent us here, please treat me well. You can do whatever you wish with her."

The price glared at _Sera_, speaking not a word. He walked over to Sera and grabbed her arm.

"Let go!" She cried. "Don't touch me."

"Quiet!" He hissed, eyes flashing dangerously. "Quiet or I'll rip your tongue out!"

"Ooh, I like that." _Sera_ purred. "Such virulence… I'd like to see you in private. I think we'd get along very nicely…"

"Shut up." He commanded.

_Sera_ pouted slighted but followed as the Prince dragged Sera down the halls of the Forsaken Palace. They entered a side room with a bed against one wall. The room was bleak. Everything seemed to be immovable. Against the opposite wall was a table with a decanter of some amber liquid. The Prince threw Sera onto the bed.

"I like where this is going." _Sera_ said.

"Drink." The Prince commanded. "Loosen yourself up a bit."

_Sera_ smirked and poured herself a glass from the decanter.

"Eager for some play, are we, dear?" _Sera's_ smile grew more twisted as she drank from the glass.

She paused slightly and then grinned back at the Prince.

"Ooh, you naughty boy… don't do anything too embarrassing to me…"

She collapsed onto the stone tile, the concoction of drugs in the drink knocking her completely unconscious. The Prince scowled at her still form.

"Crazy psycho-bitch…" he muttered.

He turned to Sera.

"Now that that bystander's out of the way."

Sera backed up against the far end of the bed, trying to protect herself as best as she could.

"Come now." The Prince walked closer. "Turn around."

"No! Leave me alone!"

The Prince sighed.

"Do you not trust me?"

"Of course not!" came the furious reply.

"What if I told you I could help you?"

Sera regarded the man cautiously.

"Impossible. This is Hell. Only the wicked are sent here. You're lying."

The Prince chuckled slightly.

"Ah, but I'm only here for what I did when I was alive."

"Who isn't?" Sera asked bitterly.

"But seriously. I thought about everything I did. I know I screwed up during my life. And now you're here."

Sera backed away slowly, not particularly sure what the man's intent was. He frowned slightly.

"I mean, now I can redeem myself."

"Right…"

The Prince sighed slightly. He walked over to _Sera's_ still form.

"I'll explain it to you once we take care of this psychopath."

He began tying _Sera's_ limbs to the bedposts with some silvery chains. Sera noted a faint glow of magic about them. The Prince paused, then, after thinking for a bit, he tore off _her_ clothes.

"What are you doing?!" Sera cried eyes darkening as a faint tinge or red appeared on her cheeks.

The Prince smirked.

"Quite the innocent little princess we have here." Then he explained. "This might keep her busy wondering at least for a while. Come on."

He untied Sera's wrists and opened the door to lead Sera out. He bolted the door with a plank of wood and several deadbolts.

"Why are you doing this?" Sera asked, now thoroughly confused.

"The little I did at the end of my life to help your friends could not overwrite what I had done throughout my life. Perhaps if I help from this side of the battlefield, I will gain some validity in the eyes of the Creator."

"Right…" Sera muttered. "Wait, battlefield?"

The Prince stopped and turned to face her.

"You mean, you don't know?" The Prince looked slightly exasperated.

"What?" Sera looked slightly defiant.

"Envy. He's summoned Meteor again. That crazy son of a bitch thinks it'll be fun to allow demons to roam the ruins of civilization. The only thing in his way is the Holy City now. Well, soon, after an all-out attack… I don't suppose much of it will remain either…"

Sera stared at him in disbelief.

"Wait! What about the Creator? Lucifer? Surely neither would allow such madness!"  
The Prince sighed slightly.

"That's where it gets complicated. Apparently the Creator has gone missing from the Holy City. The bastards in this place are all giddy about it, saying that she ran away in fear of destruction. As for Lucifer, it seems that Envy overthrew him. He hasn't been seen for a long as Envy came back."

Sera paced in desperation.

"I have to get out of here! I need to find the Creator! There's not enough time, though! I need to stop Envy…" She looked panicked so the Prince interrupted her rant.

"I said, I'd help you, so stop trying to do everything yourself. It's annoying."

"Sorry… and thank you, Prince."

He suddenly burst into laughter.

"Did you really think that's my name?" He looked extremely amused.

Sera pouted.

"Well I don't know what else to call you? Or would you prefer, My Savior?" She said sarcastically.

"That sounds stupid." He grinned. "Just call me Rufus. Come on. I think I know how to get you out of this hellhole."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Vincent paced the room, thinking about how they could possibly survive this fight against all of Hell. Envy's letter repeated in his mind as listened to the clamor outside. They had as much of a plan as he did. He turned in frustration, staring at the sky again, ignoring a small sound from behind him. Defense came first. If they were able to stop the Meteor again, then the city would need to be protected. Unfortunately, there were also the people back on the Planet. While Reeve and the others would do their all to protect the bodies, they needed help. A group would need to ensure that nothing happened to their bodies while they were trying to defend the City. The sound came again, this time slightly louder and more persistent. Vincent growled, thinking it was just Galian trying to annoy him and cheer him up at the same time. If forty to fifty percent of the troops were sent to defend Midgar, Junon, Wutai, and Cosmo Canyon, the four remaining strongholds from what he was told, the City defense would be stretched thin. If the generals and former AVALANCHE members joined, it would help reduce the difference in powers. But of course, there was still the Meteor, and that game. The sound came again followed by a soft flutter. Fed up, Vincent turned around.

"Galian, cut it…" Vincent began before a small white object collided with his head, cutting him off.

Stunned, Vincent stumbled back a few steps before looking up. In front of him fluttered a small white dragon holding a note. It stared blankly at him, as if he were stupid. It seemed to have been waiting for him to take the note, gotten bored, and then charged at him. Vincent grabbed the note, still wary of the completely random dragon that had appeared in his room. As he grabbed it, the dragon growled, apparently happy that it had completed his task, and landed on his head. Distracting as this was, the addressee of the letter drew his attention.

From Lyria, the Creator:

To Vincent and the others,

Meteor will disappear if Envy is slain. Take Requius with you. Send twenty percent of the troops to defend the Planet. Demons will be focused on the city. The remaining troops will defend as you and the others go for Envy.

Godspeed.

The letter seemed hastily written and not much was explained. Vincent stared at the dragon once again. It stared back and then head butted him again, growling angrily, tiny white fangs gleaming in the light of the room.

"Right… gotta tell the others…" Vincent muttered to himself.

He left the room, heading back to the House of Legends with the dragon fluttering off after him.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Move it yah assholes!"

Demons scurried left and right, obeying orders as quickly as possible. Their moment had come at last. Finally, these creatures of evil who had rightfully been condemned to this inferno would be able to see the daylight again, in addition to the chaos which they so dearly anticipated. The one belting out orders was a full head taller than the rest, horns curling to form two finely sharpened spears. A messenger ran up to him.

"Captain Houken! Lord Envy demands the troops be ready by the hour. And also…" the messenger whispered something in Houken's ear.

The captain smirked and nodded.

"Good. Tell Envy we will be ready well before then."

The demons below continued to sharpen swords and axes while other practiced on each other, resulting in several casualties before the battle even began. Houken roared for silence.

"Alright ya bastards! This is it! We can do whatever we want, wherever we want! The main goal is to capture the City! Otherwise, I DON'T GIVE A SHIT WHAT YOU DO!"

The frenzied demons below screamed out in approval. Houken smirked as they rushed off to the rally point where Envy would break the space to allow troops access to the surface and, consequentially, the Holy City. Houken pulled aside several of his strongest warriors."

"You four. I've got a special mission for you." He said grinning evilly.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Nearby two figures ducked back into the alley as they took in what they had just heard. Sera placed a hand over her heart. It beat violently in fear. Rufus slid down against the wall.

"Dammit… if they succeed…" he muttered.

"We need to let someone know!" Sera said worriedly.

"How?" Rufus asked. "We're having quite the time getting out. Usually these back alleys are empty. Damn Houken. He even came down to these areas to get warriors."

"We can only hope that they are well prepared." Rufus said quietly. "Don't worry. If my suspicions are correct, _they_ will be there."

Sera nodded, though still worried. Something inside her seemed to be pulsating, nagging at her, as if she had forgotten something important. She wrote it off as anxiety of forecoming events.

"Come on." Rufus said. "Let's at least try to join the others at the Holy City. We need to disguise you better. You stand out too much."

Silently, they crept away from the gathering of demons.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Within the Holy City, final preparations were being made. Not two hours ago had Vincent shown the others the second letter, which caused an immediate mobilization of all capable hands. Weaponry clattered as Generals were appointed to each division. The odd numbered divisions would intercept the demons at the breach between the worlds, where the flow would undoubtedly be slower, giving the soldiers a chance to strike while the demons were still arriving. However, this barricade would eventually fall due to stamina and the sheer number of the enemy. These soldiers would then retreat, while picking off random demons, falling back to the gates of the Holy City. The soldiers would join up with the even numbered divisions. The even numbered divisions included most of the archers and support troops. They would wait to cover the retreating troops and tend to the injured. Here at the walls, both troops would join in an attempt to protect the city and survive the potential siege.

This was where Vincent and the others came in. Their job was to follow the attacking divisions to the breach and, once the majority of the troops began chasing the retreating troops, use the same breach to enter Hell. There, they would attempt to break through whatever obstacles Envy was preparing, kill him, and restore Lucifer and Lyria to power. With this done, the demons should be returned to their rightful place. With this done, hopefully everything would return to normal. Time moved forward, driving these two factions closer together, all the while pushing the ever present Meteor closer to the Planet. In less than a day, the world would face its impending doom for the second time in a decade.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

She awoke. Blearily, she looked around, noticing a faint chill. Her clothes were torn. A smile began to form on her face. Struggling slightly, she found her arms to be chained. She looked around the room. It was empty. Paths of possibilities formed in her mind, replacing the hour that she had been unconscious. The smile grew. Her eyes widened slightly with a mixture of the emotions passing through her body.

**DELIGHT**.

The game had become more interesting. Anything was possible now. How many factions were there out there? How many were known? Most importantly, who would DIE? She began chuckling.

**DESIRE.**

Oh how much fun this would be. She had to have more. More pain. More harassment. More DEATH. And all she had to do to get it, was take several easy steps out that door. She could contribute. She could relish. She could immerse herself in it until every sense in her body rang with it. Lustful moans seeped into her laughter, turning it into a hoarse seething giggle.

**ANNOYANCE**.

These chains were harder to break than she had thought. The Prince had no doubt made them specially to seal magic. But she was so close to obtaining what she wanted. She struggled harder, the skin around her wrists and ankles tearing messily, bleeding all over the sheets. She would get out. She must get out. It was out there, everything she'd ever strived for. Lusted for. She continued to laugh, louder as she struggled against her bonds. The clank of chains rang through the empty chamber as she began to thrash. Something did indeed begin to give, though it wasn't the chains around the bed.

**ANGER**.

How dare they look down on her. Did they really think these pitiful pieces of metal would hold her? She was no weakling by any means. They completely underestimated her magical prowess and physical strength. Just because she was tied to a hopeless little broad and was forced to take on her appearance, they thought they would hold her with mere wires. Even without her magic, these bonds were nothing to her in her glory days. She ground her teeth and bit her lip as she struggled harder. The bedposts creaked slightly. She laughed hysterically at the feeble attempts stop her. Laughed at the old woman's attempts to stop her and Envy's plans. Laughed at the world outside the room, unknowing of what she wanted to do to it. Blood splattered the white sheets, it was not a complete mess of red and darker stains. Blood was starting to pool around the bed. She didn't care. The madness inside numbed everything, driving her towards one thing and one thing only.

**VENGEANCE.**

Everyone would suffer. Everyone would feed her hunger. Though she knew deep down she would not be satisfied until they were all dead. Especially that broad. Unconsciously suppressing her with all the stupid GOOD events she surrounded herself with, rarely allowing the unknown presence within her to feed off the hatred of others. She would not DIE. No. DEATH would be a gift to the girl in light of what she intended to do to her. She would save that silly little thing for last. Force her to watch as the optimistic world she loved crumbled around her. Force her to look into the eyes of those in line for their inescapable fate. Force the girl to watch as she bathed in the pain and malice. Yes, this was how it tasted. She had forgotten from years of GOOD and HAPPINESS. This bitter disgusting taste of the blood of thousands, each writhing in agony and pleading for death, as she strode among the bodies, lashing out only when she felt merciful. The bedposts creaked loudly as they splintered under her insanity. She stood up from the bed, chains dangling from her wrists and ankles, glistening with blood. She had stopped laughing now. She could feel it within her. The bonds had been broken. The ones that hag had placed, setting Envy back for the better part of a century. She was free. Her eyes now burned with desire and insanity. She longed for that taste one more time, to glut herself on it. She could do it now. She would have it even if it killed her. That luscious, insatiable feeling.

**WRATH.**

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Me: Whew! That last little section reminded me what it was like to write with a full flow of inspiration! If anyone noticed, it was quite awkward shifting between Sera and _Sera_… I mean, I can barely tell the italics… and then suddenly, that last bit jumped into my head. I love this last bit. It broke me away from using _Sera_ and pushed the story in a more interesting direction, and it added a bit of history I'll write in later :3 I'm so proud of myself… yah right. Anyway, now that school is about to begin again, I may not turn another chapter for a while. Hopefully it'll be before New Years… Review and Wait!


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